Waiting for the End
by letzigprincess
Summary: After a tragic loss, Edward and Bella's marriage begins to unravel. One bad decision leads to the next until an unexpected event rocks both of them. OOC/Canon Pairings/Rated for Language, Some Violence, Some Lemons
1. Chapter 1

**Waiting for the End**

**Hey, everyone! I've been meaning to start writing this story for a while now and I've finally managed to piece it all together in my head. So here it is! My first Fanfic. I don't have a beta yet...if anyone has suggestion on finding one, please let me know...otherwise, enjoy and review! Feedback would be super helpful and motivating!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the wonderful work that is Twilight. I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes.**

**Chapter 1**

Edward Anthony Cullen stood across the noisey room of a local dance club staring intently at his drop-dead gorgeous wife. Isabella Marie Cullen had on a little black dress trimmed with white silk, and knowing his wife, more than likely had nothing else on except her six inch stilettos. Her long, brown hair fell just below her shoulders and as she laughed, he watched her push it out of her eyes. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever had the chance to encounter. Using every bit of restraint he could summon, he stood planted to the floor, refusing to let himself make a scene. This shouldn't be a surprise to him, yet it still made his blood boil. He was seeing red. Who wouldn't when their wife was running her hands through the hair some tanned, blonde fucker who was currently putting his hands all over his wife's beautiful welcoming body? Finally gathering enough power to walk away, he turned and strode right back out the door.

"Hey, man! Wait up, you just got here!" Edward heard his brother, Emmett, calling from across the parking lot. Not wanting to deal with him, Edward took a deep breath and decided he really didn't have a choice. Knowing his older brother, Emmett would just follow him home like a lost puppy, making sure when he got there that he got the whole story. Once he reached his sleek, black Vanquish, he leaned against it and waited for Emmett to catch up.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? You were the one that wanted to come here and..."

"She's here. Bella's here. So is some dickhead whose in there grinding into her and grabbing her ass. Sorry if I don't want to stay for that little show."

Emmett was quiet for a moment, something that rarely happened with his twenty seven year old, 6'3 brother. After his moment of recovery, Emmett shook his head and rolled his eyes. Edward knew what was coming next, the same thing that ALWAYS came next. "You two seriously just need to let each other go. There is nothing more that can be said about this sick relationship you two are in. I'm serious. Look at you, Edward! You two are killing each other!"

This time it was Edwards turn for silence. He knew they were toxic for each other. In all honesty, he knew the reason for that was him. He broke his vows to her, more than once, he deserved every ounce of turmoil he was receiving and he fucking knew it. "Em, I'm going home. I'm sorry I called you and took you away from Rose. Go home. Tell her I said hi."

Reaching for the door handle, he was surprised when Emmett's large hand came down and grabbed his arm. "Uh-uh, nooo way. You are coming with me. You're not going back to mom and dad's so you can sit and pout on a Saturday night. You called because you wanted to go out and that's exactly what we're going to do. Leave your car here, I'll drive. You won't have the ability when this night is over."

That last sentence Emmett said should have been the hint as to what would happen that night but he was right, again. Nodding his head, he gave a small smirk. "Think we should call Jazz?"

Emmett returned Edwards smirk with one of his own, "Fuck yes, Rose is out with Alice. Jasper's trying to finish up the baby's room. I'll give him a call."

"To girls and all their crazy bullshit!" Emmett slurred as he raised his double shot of Cuervo and attempted to clink Edward and Jasper's glasses. Edward was laughing too hard to drink his own after watching Emmett spill half of his on the table. It was two hours after Edward had seen his wife hanging on some younger guy and the eight or nine shots he had already slammed down were definitely in effect. Finally taking a deep breath, Edward lifted his glass up and said, "To us, the stupid fuckers who put up with their crazy shit!" Jasper just shook his head and laughed.

Edward had known Jasper Whitlock since freshman year in college. Jasper came from the South but chose to go to college in Seattle after receiving a few scholarships. They had survived the freshman dorms together as roomates and eventually moved up in the world to live in campus apartments for the other three years. He could remember his first impressions of Jasper. Southern accent, curly blonde hair, blue eyes, about his height but a little slimmer—he seemed a bit uptight and Edward wondered what he'd gotten himself into. He had wanted to live at school for the main reason that Bella was doing the same, a few states away. Everything felt emptier without her and he wanted to find some distractions.

After their parents had left that first day, the guys did what most normal college students do, they unpacked their still wrapped books, dumped them onto their desks, grabbed their fake I.d's and headed out to party. As soon as Edward had mentioned it, Jasper had surprised him by pulling out his own fake id. He knew they would get along beautifully. The two rarely disagreed on much of anything, the only time their relationship was on the rocks was after Jasper met his little sister, Alice—who was now seven months pregnant with her and Jasper's first child. Bella had brought Alice, who was pretty much her best friend, to their dorm the second weekend. What a great weekend that had been...

"Why the fuck are you staring at me?" Jasper questioned, jokingly, bringing Edward back to the situation at hand.

"Don't flatter yourself, Jazz. I'm just trying to figure out what the hell my little sister sees in you." Edward smirked.

"I'm good in bed." Jasper stated back, sipping his captain and coke nonchalantly.

Edward flipped him off, knowing Jasper was using the one thing that got under his skin the most. Turning to Emmett, he realized he was texting someone—though he and Jasper both knew who that someone was. "Emmett, Ally is picking us up in an hour. You can go that long without talking to Rose."

Emmett, being Emmett, just shrugged his shoulders and went back to his phone. Shaking his head, he was just about to make a joke about his whipped brother but suddenly felt someone's arms wrap around his abs. For a moment he let himself think that maybe it was Bella. "Hey, baby," Tanya breathed seductively into this ear. Jasper and Emmett- who had quit messing with this damn phone- were staring behind him with strange expressions.

Edward tensed, kicking himself for thinking that it could have been his wife, for WANTING it to be his wife. He turned to see none other than the blonde bombshell, Tanya fucking Denali. She was the main reason for most of his marital problems. As he came face to face with her, he was still sitting, and she put her hands on his knees. Rubbing up and down his thighs, he shifted so that he could adjust himself, trying not to stare too much at the over abundance of cleavage that was there for all to see.

He could almost feel Emmett and Jasper glaring at him behind his back. They both hated Tanya—hell, his whole family hated her. They loved Bella almost as much as he did, ALMOST. Thinking about Bella made that guilty feeling he was so good at pushing down come right back to the surface. With a deep sigh, he took Tanya's hands and brought them to rest at her sides. "Tanya, no. Come on, you've got to let this go."

"Why?" she asked annoyed, "It's not like your little wifey isn't at the next bar over with her tongue down some others guy's throat. Why should she get to have all the fun?"

"You saw her too, huh?" Edward ask, sounding more defeated than he wanted to feel.

"Yep," Tanya replied, popping the 'p'.

"Edward, everyone saw her," she said quietly, as if trying to let him down easy. "Bella Swan is not good for you, sweetie. I can be more than her. I can give you what you want. Right now."

"She's still Bella Cullen. Please, just go," Edward turned to face his two friends, only to find they had walked away and were now back up at the bar. He heard Tanya sigh while she reached for his abs again, this time, pressing herself into his back and kissing the side of his neck. It had been weeks since he'd been with anyone and blood instantly began to go South. He couldn't remember how long it took or who was even still around. In what felt like seconds he was returning the kiss and Tanya was pulling him towards the door.

"My place?" she whispered in a husky voice. Standing up definitely helped him to feel the alcohol. His last thought as he kissed her neck, making his way to her car, was how well Bella felt against him. The idea immediately made him hard.

The next morning...err...afternoon, Edward woke up to a high pitched beeping sound. _Did Bella forget to turn off her cell phone's alarm again?_ He wondered, still half asleep. Rolling over to wake her up, he came face to face with the blonde responsible for about ninety percent of the problems in his life. _Fuck._ Was all he could think when he thought back to what happened the night before. "Sorry if my phone woke you up," she said, trying to snuggle into him.

Prying himself away from her, he sat up and rubbed his face with his palms, "What time is it?"

"Like12:30 or something. I don't know, come back to bed."

"12:30? Shit," he muttered, standing up and throwing his boxers, jeans, and wrinkled shirt on.

"Where are you going?" Tanya asked, obviously annoyed.

"To my parents, it's my mom's birthday and we're supposed to be having a big lunch together. I should have left an hour ago. No, Tanya, I shouldn't have been here at all."

"Oh, come on!" Tanya cried, pulling the white blankets up around her as she sat up, "She doesn't love you anymore! When are you going to get that? You are going to stand here and beat yourself up for sleeping with me when she's probably fucking that guy she was with last night as we speak!"

"Where's my phone?" he asked ignoring her.

"I don't know! I wasn't exactly concerned with where you were dropping everything last night. I was a little preoccupied!" Now it was her turn to stand up, facing him with her palms up in a 'what-the-hell' stance. It would have been so much more believable that she was angry with him had she not been standing there completely naked.

"Alright, well, I really have to go," he turned and walked out of the bedroom towards the front door, noticing his cell phone he flipped it open and noticed he had so many messages the alert was up that his inbox was almost completely full. There were three from Emmett, two from Jasper, TEN from Alice..._what the fuck?_ Worried something may have happened with Alice and the baby, a thought that made him sick, he didn't bother to read her texts. Jasper answered on the first ring.

"Where the fuck are you?" Jasper practically spat at him over the phone.

"Is Alice okay? Please, God, tell me it's not the bab..."

"Alice is right here, what are you talking about?" Jasper went from being livid to being confused in a matter of milliseconds, which in turn confused the shit out of Edward even more.

"Huh?"

"What? I don't get it."

"Jasper, what the fuck is going on?" Edward finally ask, cutting to the chase.

"Did you not read any of the fifty thousand text we've been sending you all night?" Now, Edward could tell Jasper was just getting more annoyed by the minute.

"Are my mom and dad, okay? Fuck, Jazz, just tell me what the hell is going on!"

"No, dumbass, it's not them! Bella, remember her? Your wife? She's in the hospital. You need to get here like seriously fucking now!"

**Please review :)**


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: After this chapters intro, we're going back in time to watch all the dramatic goodness play out :) It's going to take a good many chapters to get back to where we are leaving off...I just don't want to confuse anyone. I promise you won't be disappointed! It's going to be one hell of a ride :)

Also, the end of this chapter brings forth a sensitive issue for some, a pregnancy complication that some may have trouble reading. Be warned.

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters. I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes.

Chapter 2

Edward tried to get through all the text messages he had received as Tanya drove him to the local hospital where his father had worked since Emmett was just a few months old. Dr. Carlisle Cullen had just graduated from med school when he'd found out his wife was expecting. During Emmett's delivery, Esme was having complications and the hospital kept paging and paging for a doctor. When one didn't show up, Dr. Cullen took matters into his own hands. He delivered Emmett with only the help of one nursing student. When the hospital director came to keep the peace and make sure they wouldn't sue, he was immediately taken aback and offered Carlisle a job. Staying home with his infant son for a few months, he decided to take the hospital up on it's offer. Edward prayed they were allowing him to treat Bella.

When Tanya had come down the stairs this morning, he had practically carried her to the car. His sole thought was to get to her...to his beautiful Bella. Jasper wouldn't tell him what happened over the phone and no one else wanted to talk to him. Now, hands shaking, he went through text after text. The problem was, not damn message told him what he wanted to know. Most were just threats from his family, that if they didn't hear from him soon they were calling Jacob Black. Jacob was the last person he wanted to deal with right now.

_If something happens to her..._ he stopped the thought before it could eat him alive. Giving up on his phone and telling Tanya to drive faster, he closed his eyes and did something he hadn't done in a long time, he remembered back to the last time he was being rushed to Bella's bedside.

**One Year Ago**

"Edward, stop!" Bella cried through fits of giggles.

"Stop what, angel? I'm just telling my little son I love him," he smiled up at her over her very pregnant belly. His finger kept tracing light circles over their unborn baby.

"No, you're not! You're tickling me! _On purpose!_" she kept laughing, regardless of her annoyance.

"Alright, alright," he said, kissing her tummy and sliding up so he could lie down on the bed beside her. "I love you, Bell's."

"I know," she said with a smirk, laughing again, "I love you too, baby. Now, go, Emmett's not going to be happy if you're late for the all-important guy night. Edward Jr. and I will be fine."

Edward cringed, "We are _not _naming our son Edward Jr. When he's older and people call they'll ask for Edward and you'll give it to him and it would be for me or our mail would be confused or the bank would confuse us and put money into the wrong account..."

"Edward, shut up. You're rambling," she said smiling and kissed him on the cheek, "and stalling. Go! We'll worry about names for him later. I have your cell number, Em's cell number, Jazz's cell number, _and_ the number of _every_ bar in Seattle. I will call you. You will not, I repeat, _will not_ miss the birth of our firstborn son."

This seemed to appease him as he nodded his head and stood up defeated, just in time for Emmett's voice to come booming from downstairs. "Edward, let's go before Rosalie changes her mind and wants me to stay home with her! I can't do another night of seating charts for this wedding! I'm begging you, MOVE YOUR ASS!"

Bella and Edward looked back and forth from the door to each other before busting out in laughter. Kissing her forehead, telling her one more time he loved them both and to call if she needed anything. He reluctantly made his way down to Emmett—who was currently leaning against Edward's front door with his arms crossed. "Where we headed, Em?" he asked, putting his shoes on.

"Ty's for a little while then who knows where. Is Jazz coming?"

"Yeah, I'll call and tell him to meet us at Tyler's," Edward said, pulling out his cell and sending the message to his closest friend.

An hour later, Edward, Emmett, Jasper, and Tyler Crowley were all sitting around a poker table in Tyler's basement. Beer in one hand and cards in the other, Edward was laughing at a joke Emmett had told when Tyler leaned forward and asked, "So, Edward, how are things with you and the wifey?"

"Really great," Edward said with a smile.

"Jake still a problem?"

Edward was quiet for a minute, trying to figure out how to answer that, "Not really, I mean, he still isn't willing to let her go but he makes her happy. He's living in Forks still and is dating Leah Clearwater—I don't think you know her—he just has a habit of being a little too much in our business. With the baby coming, I know she'll want to be down there more to see her dad but it bothers me that she'll see Jacob more. I'd never tell her that, though, or stop her from going."

"She doesn't have long to go now, right?"

"Twenty-three days."

"Someone's excited," laughed Jasper.

"I am excited," Edward admitted, "I can't explain it. I just want to meet him."

"Well, I think this calls for some celebratory shots!" Tyler smiled, pulling out a bottle of Jager from under the table.

"Oh...not such a great idea. If Bell's needs me..."

"Come on, Cullen, you're going to turn down a night of fun just in case something that ISN'T going to happen actually does?" Tyler asked.

"Fine, one shot. Then back the hell off. I'm serious."

The problem was, Edward is what most would call a 'lightweight'. After his shot of Jager and three more beers, he was practically falling out of his seat as he reached for the rest of the bottle. "Edward, easy man, slow down a little."

"Em, I...I'm fffinnne." Edward slurred, "I'm havin' a kid! Drink uup!"

BPOV

After Edward had left, Bella ran some water and eased herself into their large claw-foot tub. The water felt so good as she rested her head on a folded towel and ran her hands over her round belly. She could feel the baby kicking through her skin and smiled to herself. The first time she had met Edward, she had no idea that five years later they would be married and expecting a baby.

Bella had moved to Forks to live with her father, Charlie, after her mother decided to travel with her minor league, baseball playing boyfriend. When she had called her childhood friend, Jacob Black, he talked her into trying to convince her mother to let her move in with Charlie. Bella had been raised in Forks and missed the kids, who were now teens, she'd grown up with on the reservation. While she didn't have a drop of Native American in her blood, Charlie and Billy Black—Jake's dad—were best friends. She and Jake were both ecstatic when her mother, Renee, had agreed.

She moved in the week the school in Phoenix went on summer vacation. This way, Renee figured Bella would have the summer to decide if Forks was for her. If not, she could move back and finish out her senior year in Phoenix, living with her aunt. At the end of June, Bella was in love with the small town and forming the same feelings for her oldest friend, Jake.

Jake, her and the rest of the reservation kids were down at La Push beach on a somewhat sunny day—these days rarely occurred in Forks. Always the klutz, Bella fell from one of the docks, hitting her head on the way. She was knocked unconscious and the last thing she could remember before hitting the water was the intense pain and Jacob—who was running down the dock about to jump into the water.

She figured she had only been out for a few seconds because before she knew what happened, two strong arms wrapped around her, carrying her to shore. When she opened her eyes, she realized it wasn't Jake holding onto her—Jake was standing beside them with an incredibly pissed off look on his face. Instead, she looked up to the beautiful stranger with the greenest jade colored eyes she had ever seen.

Edward Anthony Cullen, his brother Emmett, and sister Alice were all in Forks visiting their aunt and uncle, Elizabeth and Peter Masen. They were visiting the beach with their family when Edward had rescued Bella—much to Jake's annoyance. Edward talked his parents into letting him stay with the Masens for the rest of the summer. It was a summer of Bella and Edward falling in love, of Edward and Jacob competing for her attention everyday, and the summer Bella knew she belonged with Edward.

Five years later and she still couldn't bring herself to regret turning down Jacob's advances. She loved him, nowhere as near as much as she loved Edward, but more like as a brother. She loved him the way she loved Em and Jazz. If only Jacob could understand that. Now that he was with Leah, Bella prayed everyday that he would get over her and just be happy

She was pulled out of her reminiscing by the trilling of her cell phone. Looking around, she realized her phone was in the bedroom. Muttering to herself, she stood up and grabbed a towel. Being the clumsy person that she was, she never should have tried to wrap her towel around herself and step over the tub at the same time—she should have known better. Before she knew what was happening, she fell forward, her stomach hitting the side of the tub as she came down hard. She hit her head on the floor, all of her weight on her stomach. Crying out in pain, she tried to pull herself out of the tub but her awkward position wasn't letting her.

She knew if she yelled for help no one would hear her, they lived alone on five acres of property. The piercing pain in her stomach was what gave her that extra bit of strength to push herself up and back into the tub. What she saw made her fight to not vomit. She was sitting in water and there were some small drops of blood. _Oh, God, the baby!_

Biting back tears, she tried to stay calm, praying her son would be okay and made her way out of the tub towards the bedroom. The pain was so bad in her back and stomach she ended up having to crawl. Reaching the night stand, she finally got to her phone. She tried Edward's cell and when she couldn't get a hold of him called Emmett. With still no answer, she called her mother-in-law. Esme answered on the first ring. "Esme," she choked out, "I need an ambulance. Is Carlisle there?"

The only thing that went through her mind the whole way to the hospital was the fact that she couldn't get a hold of her husband. He was so worried he'd miss the baby's birth, she was shocked he wasn't answering his phone. This thought scared Bella almost as much as the idea that she was losing her son. _What if something had happened to Edward?_ She bit back tears, scared to think what would happen if she lost both of them. Holding her phone in her hand, she flipped it open and called Edward, Jasper, and Emmett each for the sixth time.

Esme and Carlisle insisted on giving Bella a ride to the hospital. When they arrived at the house, she was desperately trying to ignore the pain and pull on some clothes. She succeeded with everything except her shirt. The pain was so intense she was having trouble standing up straight let alone lifting her arms. Carlisle found her first and helped her put on a baggy button up shirt of Edwards.

"Honey, let me try to call. You just keep taking deep breaths and try to relax. We'll track him down. I'm sure they're just somewhere where it's too loud to hear their phones," Esme was saying through a totally fake smile as she turned in the front seat to look at Bella. Much to Bella's despair and embarrassment, the bleeding seemed to be getting worse. She was starting to feel faint and was shaking. She was trying her damnest to not even think about the loss of her child. She couldn't break down. She needed to be as strong as possible for when Edward found out. He was going to be devastated. _Where the hell is he?_

"Bella! Hey, you have to fight to stay awake, Bella!" Carlisle was saying urgently from the front seat. Thankfully, they were pulling into the parking lot of the emergency room. There was hardly anyone around and that was a good thing. There was so much going on around her without the addition of a crowd—strangers asking her questions, Carlisle asking questions—it was too much. She could hear Esme crying into her phone, "Dammit, Emmett, if you get this tell your brother he _needs_ to call me!" _Calm Esme just said 'dammit'? Oh, God, this is not looking good._ Closing her eyes, Bella gave herself over to the darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

**Tons of love to all of those amazing people responsible for the many alerts in my email! Love you guys! Even bigger thank you to those who reviewed! You guys are amazing in my book! **

**This one's a bit longer and much sadder. You might need to keep some tissues handy. Also, it's still dealing with the same issue as the previous chapter. Please don't read if it will upset you, that's not what I'm trying to do. We have to get through this to move onto the next. So, here it is! Yay!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters. I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes.**

**Chapter 3**

It was two am by the time Edward managed to make it home. After Tyler's, the guys found their way to a small bar and two different clubs. By the time they were ready to leave, Edward had puked his fucking guts out— at least three times. There was officially nothing in his stomach and after walking home from Jasper's house, he had finally sobered up to the point where he probably could have drove home. He refrained from calling Bella to tell her he was on his way. He figured she would have been in bed for a few hours now—he just kept reminding himself that he would have heard from her if she needed him.

Emmett and Jasper had been just as drunk as him. Before leaving Tyler's, he and Emmett had hidden Jasper's cell after watching him text Alice three times in the first ten minutes he was there. Realizing he should call and remind Emmett that the phone was still in Emmett's car, he remembered Jazz had made Emmett turn his off when Rose had sent him a text to ask who cousin Lydia was and where she should sit. Emmett had asked Edward about it and he couldn't even remember who the hell Lydia was let alone who she should sit with at the damn wedding. It turned into him and Emmett having a thirty minute drunken conversation over every cousin they could possibly have.

He was stepping onto the front of the sidewalk leading up to the house when he pulled out his own phone. Before he could open it, he noticed that the front hall light was on. Bella never left lights on when she went to bed. Walking faster he also found the door locked, another habit that Bella was infamous for—leaving the door _unlocked_—it drove him crazy. Once the door was unlocked, he dropped his phone and keys on the table by the door and sprinted up the stairs. The door to their room was open, the bed was made, and the bathroom door that connected the rooms together was wide open.

"Bella!" Edward was frantic now as he burst into the bathroom, flicking the light on. No Bella. Looking down he realized there was still water in the bathtub and as he absently reached down to pull the plug out he realized there was a red tint to the water. His stomach plummeted, as he looked back towards the bedroom and saw a few drops of blood. "Isabella!" he yelled louder, running out of the bedroom and down the stairs out to the garage. Her car was still there. _Was the baby coming?_

Running back into the house he grabbed his phone and opened it to call her when he finally took notice of the voice mails and text messages he'd received. Most of them were from his mom so he called her first. Standing there, now completely sober, he reached down to pet Jasper Cat, the black and brown tabby cat he had acquired after a strange drunken night in college—but that was a story for a different day. To his surprise, Alice picked up on the second ring. "Ally? Where's mom?"

"Where are you?" she asked, annoyed with him.

"At home. Where's mom?" he asked again, growing more worried by the minute.

"She's in with Bella..."

"Okay! Tell her I'll be there in a few minutes and that I love her! Wait, does she have her overnight bag for her and the baby? Alice, this is too early..."" Edward was already back in the garage throwing the door open to his Vanquish when the thought hit him. It wasn't time yet. For the first time since he'd gotten home he realized maybe this wasn't a good thing.

"She's at the hospital, we all are. Edward, Bella's going to be okay. You need to be here but please don't wreck trying to get here. Take your..."

"Is he okay? Is the baby okay?"

"Just...just come. We'll tell you what's going on as soon as you're here. Bella's okay." He knew as soon as she wouldn't answer his question something was up. Hanging up the phone, he called Emmett's house and as soon as he answered Edward blurted out, "I think Bella's having the baby! I think it's too early...do you think it's too early?"

"I have no clue, man. Rose isn't here. I'm confused."

"You're drunk, there's a difference. I think Rose is at the hospital with everyone else. I'm going to call Jazz, get to the hospital."

"I'll call and tell him were going to be uncle's! He can drive."

"Alright, see ya there."

Halfway to the hospital he realized Alice never did answer him about the overnight bag. They'd had it all planned. Four changes of clothes for her, four for the baby, and three for him. The diaper bag was sitting on top loaded with everything they could possibly need. He also remembered he'd taken the wrong car, there wasn't much room in the Vanquish for a carseat, it was in Bella's Volvo. If the baby was early he'd probably have to stay there for a few extra days, leaving enough time to exchange vehicles. He sped down the highway, refusing to miss the baby's birth.

Five minutes later he was sprinting across the parking lot and through the emergency room doors. "Isabella Cullen! My wife...she's...baby...now!"

"Okay, sir, calm down. I'm looking her up...she's in B12 in the maternity..."

Edward took off sprinting again. He knew the hospital like the back of his hand from all the times he'd visited his father over the years. Busting through the main maternity ward wing he found Rosalie and Alice standing right outside the door to B12. When he saw their faces, his smile dropped. This wasn't a 'there's-a-baby-coming' look, this was a 'something's-very-wrong' look. They both turned to look at him as he ran for her door. Rosalie stepped in front of him. The blonde hair, green eyed, model-look-alike blocked the door as if she could keep him from opening the damn thing.

"Rose, come on, move. I want to see Bell's!" he said, a little louder than he probably should have.

Glancing at Alice then back to him, Rosalie took a deep breath and started to say something before he heard his father's voice behind him. "Edward, she's not in there right now...come on, I'll take you down to her. We need to talk."

He felt as if the floor was made of sand. He wanted to run, to sprint to her, to make sure she was okay. His body was not listening to this command. Slowly, he made his way to his father's side and fell in step beside him. They walked like that for a little while before Edward finally broke the silence, "It's too early, isn't it? He's not ready, is he?"

Carlisle surprised him by sitting down on a bench in front of the doors to the OR. Edward took a seat beside him, bracing to hear that his son had some health problem, vowing to love his little one no matter what. "He would be too early but that's not exactly what happened. Bella fell today getting out of the bathtub..."

That was so his Bella, "Dad, is she okay?" he asked feeling himself relax, assuming she just needed some stitches...

"Edward," Carlisle looked down, shaking his head, "she fell on her stomach. He's gone, son. He's gone."

Edward was dreaming, he kept telling himself over and over in his head this wasn't real. Surely, he had passed out somewhere and when he woke up everything would be okay. This wasn't real. It couldn't be real. In the dream, he'd forgotten the diaper bag. Next time, when he woke up, he would remember it. He'd bring the right car, too...

"Edward, say something," Carlisle brought him back to the flourescent-lit hallway, "look at me, son."

Edward looked at his father, who now had a hold of his shoulders and was forcing him to make eye contact, "I forgot the diaper bag," he said quietly, looking back down.

"Wh...Edward, you don't need the diaper bag," now Carlisle was doing something Edward had NEVER seen his father do in the twenty-five years of his life, he was crying, which started Edward's tears. Not caring who was around, where they were, or how they looked, Edward held onto his father and sobbed like he never had before. Carlisle returned the gesture and they sat that way for a good five minutes before Carlisle pulled back, "Bella's going to be fine but she needs you. You need each other right now."

"Where is she?" he asked soberly with gravel in his voice.

Carlisle led Edward down a hallway to wear Esme was standing with a tear stained face. She wrapped her arms around him as Carlisle asked what was going on. "They've been in there for awhile but I told them we wanted him..." she couldn't even make it through the sentence before she broke down.

"When can I see Bella?" Edward asked his father, still holding onto his mother.

"Soon. We tried to wait for you to take her in for the surgery but we couldn't find you and she was in a lot of pain."

"I didn't realize she could miscarry this late. I thought we were past this."

"We were. At this point, it's considered preterm labor. Bella was unconscious when we got her here and your mother and I made the decision to have the surgery as soon as possible. We didn't want anything to happen to Bell's if we could stop it."

"So, now they're...they're taking him..."

"Mr. Cullen?" the older looking doctor approached them.

"Yes," Edward said, clearing his throat.

"I'm sorry for your loss. Your wife is recovering and is being taken to a different room. We don't want her to have to go through seeing the other children in the maternity ward."

"Can I see her?"

"Of course. She'll be in room C2. Just give us a few minutes to get her up there. I'm warning you now, she's not saying much. She hasn't really digested all of this yet. She needs to stay at least tonight. Carlisle is a good friend of mine. She'll be well taken care of, I'm aware she's afraid of being here overnight and you can stay with her—we've made sure she's in a private room. You might want to get you both some new clothes for tomorrow, though."

"I...I didn't bring the diaper bag..." Edward said awkwardly, it was the first thing that came to mind.

After about five minutes, he was finally making his way into her room. She looked so much paler than she normally was and there were tubes and monitors everywhere. She looked over at him dazed before he saw the panic set in—she'd notice the IV in her arm. Walking swiftly to her he grabbed her hands and tried to calm her down, "Hi, angel. Bell's baby, calm down. You're okay, I'm right here. You gotta leave those tubes in, angel. I love you, Bell's. I love you."

Whatever haze he'd been in before, seeing her this way had snapped him out of it. This was real. Their son was gone and he'd be damned if he lost her too. Carefully sitting down next to her, he held her as much as he could. As soon as his arms were settle around her, she clung to him and sobbed.

It was two weeks later. Four days after Edward Anthony Cullen Jr.'s funeral. Bella still wasn't talking much—especially to him—especially after what happened in the hospital the day after she lost the baby. He guessed he deserved it. He was running on about an hour of sleep, slightly hung over, and completely grief stricken. He'd handled all the company that came to visit. No one stopped in that night and there was a knock on the door about ten minutes after he'd gone in. He poked his head out long enough to tell everyone goodbye and that he'd call tomorrow. He closed the door just in time to see Jasper and Emmett come laughing down the hallway, each one carrying balloons, flowers, and a football. He walked back to Bella's bed, unable to listen as the news was broken to the two men he considered his brothers.

Of course everyone had come back the next day bringing cards, puzzles, clothes for both of them...little things to get them through this God awful stay. Charlie had been the first to arrive that morning, looking like he'd rolled out of bed and drove straight to the hospital—which was probably exactly what happened after Edward's late-night call. Charlie assured him that he'd contact everyone on Bella's side. Renee told him she would be on the next plane out. It really shouldn't have surprised him later that afternoon, after everyone had left, when Jacob Black walked through the door.

Bella's reaction surprised him, she smiled. It was the first time Edward had seen her smile since this whole ordeal started. What a smile it was...like a little kid on fucking Christmas. He tried to play nice, he was just simply glad to see her a little more cheery. It didn't last long though and as soon as Jacob hugged her, she started crying again. He shook Edwards hand before sitting down in the chair by her bed.

"I'm so sorry, Bell's. I came as soon as I heard. Leah and I thought Seth was pranking us and we decided to not answer the phone last night. We didn't find out until this morning," he said, seemingly embarrassed about this.

"S'alright, Jake, I'm just glad you're here," she said, giving him a sad smile. Edward felt awkward and figured he'd go grab something to eat, letting them have some privacy. When he'd made his way back, he leaned against the outside of the door and took a few deep breaths. About to push the door open, he stopped when he heard Jacob. "I can't believe he wasn't there! That you couldn't even get a hold of him!" Edward tensed, knowing he was the man Jacob was referring to. Thoroughly annoyed, he kept listening, "Bell's, why don't you come back to Forks for awhile, stay with Charlie. He misses you and it'll get you away from here for a while. Come home."

_So I just lost my son and now this fucker is trying to talk my wife into leaving too? _About to throw the door open and go apeshit, Edward took a deep breath and listened to Bella's response, "I'd love to but not without Edward. He's mourning to. I can't just leave him. I won't just leave him."

"He's not good for you, Bell's. This city isn't your home! You belong with us! We all miss you! Come on, he couldn't even be there when you were miscarrying his kid."

_Fuck no, he DID NOT just say that. _Edward wasn't sure what set off his reaction. It could have been that he'd wanted to kill Jacob Black since the first day Bella had fallen off the dock at La Push, it could have been that he was exhausted and worn out, it could have been that he was mourning the death of his son, either way he flipped shit.

Throwing the door open, he looked at Jacob and pointed towards the door. "Get out. How dare you fucking talk to Bella or me like that after we've lost our child. That's right, Jacob, I said OUR child, as in Bella's and mine. My wife's and my child. She married ME, she was pregnant with MY baby, that's what this has always been about, hasn't it? Who could win her over? Well guess what? I fucking win. You need to leave, NOW!"

When Jacob didn't move, Edward grabbed him by the arm and pulled him out of the chair, slamming him into the wall. "Edward!", Bella cried, "Stop!" The only thing that kept him from knocking Jacob unconscious was Bella, who tried to detach herself from her IV and get out of bed. He let go of Jacob immediately, with more force than necessary, and tried to get Bella to calm down. Not being one for violence, he was even surprised with himself. Jacob left as Edward tried to apologize to Bella. She didn't speak to him for the rest of the day.

Now, two weeks later, Edward sat on their bed. He had been staring into the closet for what seemed like hours, unable to take his gaze off that fucking diaper bag. Bella barely spoke to him and when she did it was to rip into him about something else he did wrong. She wasn't even sleeping in their bed at night, the first night he had found her on Edward Jr's rocking chair, holding one of his blankets. She had been sleeping on that comfy glider Edward and Emmett had hauled in for her about a month ago.

It was just about ten in the morning and Bella would be up soon. He knew what he had to do. He had been living out of his drawers for the past couple weeks and knew that come tomorrow, he'd need to brave the closet to get to his suits—he had to go back to work. Rosalie's father, Trenton Hale, owned the law firm Edward had worked his way into. Since grad school, Edward had been a faithful employee, loving his job. Trent was very understanding and allowed Edward as much time as needed to come back, which probably had to do with a threat from Rose. She and Emmett have been inseparable since high school and were planning a wedding for over five hundred and fifty guests. Rose was also working at her father's law firm and Edward knew she was taking his cases on so he wasn't rushed to come back. She didn't need the added stress right now.

Therefore, he needed his suits. More importantly he needed to deal with that God damned light blue diaper bag. Having enough, he strode over to the closet and grabbed it. It was heavier than he remembered, a weight pulling him down. Making his way to the kitchen, he took the lid of the garbage can and dropped the whole damned thing in.

"What the _fuck_ are you doing?", he heard Bella exclaim from behind him just as he packed it in there and pulled the bag out, tying it shut.

**So, were tissues needed? Let me know! Reviews make me type faster! **

**Also, a shout-out to Cait...you know who you are and my fiance for letting me read this whole thing to him...even though he dislikes both of my obsessions :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**As always, tons of love to those responsible for all the alerts I've been getting and even more love to the lovelies who've reviewed! You make my world go 'round! **

**I've also decided I should just say it and let it be known for the rest of the chapters—this story is going to be dealing with a lot of discussion on the death of their child. If it upsets you, don't read. Otherwise, read it and love it because that's why I do it :) **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters. I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 4**

Edward heard Bella asking, no, _asking_ wasn't the right word, she was _demanding_ to know what the hell he was doing. Wanting nothing more than to not have that damn bag in his house, a constant reminder that he hadn't been there when his wife and his son needed him, he ignored her and walked with it right out the front door. Placing the black garbage bag at the end of the sidewalk, he turned and saw Bella running out of the house in her faded pink and blue flannel fleece robe. "Edward Anthony Cullen, get our son's diaper bag OUT of that trash bag _right now_!"

"No," he said firmly, "it's staying out here until it's hauled away. I don't want it here!"

"Fuck you," Bella spat, pushing past him and over to the only bag of garbage they had ever fought over. Pulling the blue bag out, she hugged it to her chest and walked back into the house, not looking back at him before slamming the door.

He went back and threw the door open. "Dammit, Bella, you can't hold on to everything of his forever! He's gone! What? Are you just going to sleep on that damn glider for the rest of your fucking life? Are you going to start carrying that bag around with you?"

He felt like an asshole, he knew he was over reacting. The one person he loved more than anything in the world was standing in front of him, tears rolling down her face. She was still clutching the diaper bag and was now shaking her head in disbelief, as if she couldn't believe he had said all of that to her. He softened, taking a step towards her just to watch her take a step away from him. "Bell's..."

"Don't," she said calmly, holding up the hand that wasn't clutching the bag, "I can't do this right now. Please, just go. I know your dad called earlier, inviting everyone to lunch...just go. I really just need you to go."

He felt what was left of his heart shatter into even more pieces. She had never asked him to leave before. Sure, they fought, what couple didn't? Sure, they screamed and yelled, they went to bed angry, they argued about bills, doing the dishes, cleaning out Jasper Cat's litter box...but she had _never_ asked him to leave before. The one time he tried was because of a fight they were having over his ex-girlfriend, Tanya, and he had left—for five minutes.

He'd made it to the end of the driveway and couldn't bring himself to back out. Knowing Bella was in the house hurting, even though it was his fault, he couldn't leave. He left the car at the end of the driveway, walked back into the house, and sat with her for three straight hours. Neither one of them would say a fucking word to the other, neither willing to back down, but even though they were upset with each other it was still easier for them both to be near each other. That's the way they had always been.

This time he knew things wouldn't be that easy. She had _asked_ him to go. This is what she wanted. Knowing he'd hurt her that bad, he knew it would be best if he'd just give her what she had asked for. The truth was, he wanted her close just as much as she wanted him gone. He knew that he had already been selfish enough. It would be best if he went.

He couldn't move. He looked around for a few moments, pretending to be searching for something. Letting Bella think that he'd lost his car keys or his wallet but he knew the truth of it. Jasper Cat came sauntering up to him, as if wondering what the hell was going on before giving up and walking away. When he looked up from where the large cat had been, he noticed Bella was no longer standing in front of him, she was retreating back upstairs. After another ten minutes of staring at the white carpeted floor, he finally decided to leave.

Pulling into his childhood home, he watched as the door was flung open before he could get the car into park. Alice practically flew down the stairs, nearly knocking him over when he got out. "I'm so glad you came! We're just finishing up the invitations for the wedding and mom cooked a turkey and...where's Bella?", she asked as her face fell into a frown, trying to look into the dark tinted windows.

"She's...um...busy. Yeah, she's really busy today. I'm...uh...not staying long. Just for lunch."

"Bullshit. Edward, what's going on," he couldn't help but chuckle, leave it to his little sister to call him out. She knew something was up and was now standing in front of him with her arms crossed.

"Ally, not now, come on. I want to go see if mom needs any help with the turkey."

"You're lying again but fine. Let's go," she said with a sigh, practically skipping up the stairs into the huge architect's dream of a house. He was greeted at the door by everyone else. Emmett was standing behind Rose with his arms around her, his mother and father were standing off to the side, and Jasper was looking at Edward with a concerned expression. He was just as observant as his wife.

"Edward, you made it!" Esme said, breaking the silence and giving him a hug. If she noticed Bella wasn't there, she didn't comment on it. He really fucking loved that woman.

When they were all seated and passing around the stuffing and potatoes, Edward pretended to pay attention as the girls went on and on about the wedding. Carlisle was trying to make small talk with Jasper about how he was thinking of redoing the bathroom. Even Emmett seemed to be babbling with the girls. _Oh, no, they sucked him into the excitement of the 'wedding of the century' _as him and Jazz had deemed it that night at Tyler's. Not one person had even mentioned Bella's name. It was strange, he would have sworn that all these years she was more loved by his parents than _he_ was.

He had nothing to contribute to any of the ramblings and sat their trying to figure out when he should take the chances of going home. He didn't know what was appropriate for a situation where the wife _asks_ the husband to leave. _What if she doesn't want me back at all?_

"Earth to Edward! Come in Edward!" Emmett's booming voice brought him back to the happy Sunday lunch.

"Sweetie, are you okay?" Esme asked, concerned, "You're staring at your turkey, dear."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, just didn't get much sleep last night." He wasn't lying, he always had trouble sleeping without Bella. After two weeks, he still wasn't used to it. He wanted to be awake if she decided to join him...but she never did.

"Alright," Esme said, standing up and walking over to him. Sliding his food away, she kissed the top of his head like she had when he was little and said, "It seems you're done eating, come on, why don't you go lie down for a little while."

He followed her out of the room and up to his childhood bed. Lying down, he watched as his mother sat down beside him and kissed his forehead, "I don't know what's going on. I can't even imagine what the two of you are going through right now. We love you both so, so much. If you don't communicate, you'll never work this out." After another kiss, this time on his cheek, she left. He was asleep in seconds.

Bella couldn't believe what he'd said to her. _He couldn't possibly have meant what he said. _She tried not to think about it but couldn't get it off her mind. She sat on the floor of the nursery, still clutching the small diaper bag. Opening it, she pulled out one of her most prized possessions, something she couldn't believe he'd want to throw out. Looking down at the sepia colored picture she smiled a faint smile and ran her finger over the ultrasound photo of her son. The only pictures of him she would ever have.

_He didn't know._ She kept trying to tell herself, trying to make herself believe he wouldn't have knowingly tried to throw away these beautiful pictures of the son they would never again see alive. _He had to have known. _She'd told him a hundred times where she'd put them, no, where HE had put them. She could remember him scanning them and sending the emails to Renee, Charlie, Billy, and supposedly Jake. She wasn't good with computers. He did it at work, brought them back home, and put them in the bag. They'd plan to get a frame for them but she'd forgotten about it.

She knew he was right about one thing, she couldn't live her life in mourning. She also knew she wasn't handling any of this well. Edward was the whipping boy in this sad life she was living. It wasn't his fault that she'd lost her child, he was just the one she was taking it out on. She had never asked him to leave before and still couldn't believe she had today. She was in even more disbelief that he had actually listened to her. Tonight. Tonight would be different. She had to stop this. She also had to know if he KNEW what he almost did today. They needed to talk. They needed to sleep beside each other. They needed to stop living this way.

Every Sunday since they'd been married, he would set up his laptop so she could talk face to face with Renee, Charlie, and Jake. Needing to take her mind off things, she figured she'd give them a call since she wasn't sure where the laptop even was. She called Renee first. Her mother was always so...well...she never really knew how to describe her mother.

"Bell's! Oh, sweetie, how are you? Phil and I are on our way to a sex therapy class! Isn't that exciting!"

"Mom, really, I don't want to hear this. I'm just calling to say hi," Bella muttered, slightly disgusted yet also just as amused.

"Please, you act like you and Edward never..."

"Mom! Alright, changing the subject..." They talked for about ten minutes before hanging up.

Next, she called Charlie, who sounded flustered like he always did. It amazed her that he _always_ answered the phone like he'd never even seen a phone before. "Uh...hello?" Charlie had asked her.

"Hey, dad, it's Bell's. Whatcha doin? You sound sort of distracted." Bella asked curiously.

"What...oh...um, yeah how are you?" he replied, obviously not paying attention.

"Who's playing?" she asked him, humored. She should have figured he was watching a game, it was almost four o'clock on a Sunday afternoon.

Jake was the last person she called. She always saved his call for last since he always cheered her up after the homesick feelings hit her from talking to Charlie and Renee. Today, like always, he knew something wasn't quite right. "What's wrong with the computer?" he asked after they'd said their hello's.

"Edward's not here to hook it up so I figured I'd just call," she answered.

"Oh, where's he at?"

"His parents for Sunday lunch."

"Why aren't you at Sunday lunch?"

"I really don't want to talk about it, Jake. Let's talk about Forks, what's the latest news?"

After talking about Seth's college move-in, Leah's new job as a night shift nurse, and Billy's cholesterol, Jake lowered his voice. "I don't know if I should bring this up right now but I don't want you to be mad at me for keeping you from knowing. I know you and Emily are close..."

"What's up, Jake? Just spit it out."

"Em's pregnant. We found out yesterday."

"Oh. That's great, Jake, really. Tell her and Sam I said congratulations," she could feel herself tearing up.

He must have heard her spirits drop, "Bell's, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up."

Then, like word vomit, it all came out. "Jake, I hate this! I hate how everyone's so worried that they watch my every movement. I hate how Edward's been acting. I hate that he just wants everything to go back to normal. His family's great but I can't even stand being around Ally anymore. I know she and Jazz are trying to get pregnant and I just want to tell them not to! That it hurts too bad when you lose a baby! Everything Edward does sets me off. Sometimes I feel like maybe we weren't given a baby because God knew we shouldn't be together.

"He's different from me. His whole family is full of successful business people! They live in huge, beautiful homes! They wear designer clothes! Hell, one of them IS a fashion designer! He drives a Vanquish for Christ sake! What am I? I'm a stay at home wife that comes from a poor small town and can't even give her husband a child! I don't belong here!"

The sound of a door slamming shut snapped her out of her venting. Spinning around she looked out the front window just in time to see headlights of a car come on in the driveway and pull out...Edward. He now took off down the street. _Shit! How much of that did he hear?_

"Bella? Are you still there?" She realized Jake had been trying to get her attention.

"Oh, God, Jake! I think Edward just heard all of that! Dammit!"

"Bella," Jake sighed, "if that's how you really feel then you shouldn't have to hide it. If you truly aren't happy there, why don't you come back here for awhile? You can spend some time with Leah and Emily! There aren't many girls our age living on the reservation, you could stay with Charlie and come hang with us. Just take a break for awhile. Maybe if you spend some time away from Seattle you can give yourself a chance to decide which is better for you."

"I know but I'd promised myself that when Edward came back from his parent's we'd talk everything out and try to fix things. I just made things worse."

"That's bullshit and you know it! He's your husband for better or for worse, right? If he can't handle how you truly feel then he's an asshole!"

"Jake, don't say that about him. He's going through a lot, too. I have to go."

"Fine, but at least think about coming here for a visit. We all really do miss you."

Hanging up, she realized Jake was right, though she'd never tell _him_ that. Edward should realize that all the sacrifices she'd made for him had to have had an effect on her. Of course she missed her family! She loved his just as much but maybe she did need to get away for awhile.

Suddenly feeling the effects of all the sleepless nights, she decided to climb into her and Edward's bed for the first time in two weeks. Pulling the covers up, she wondered when he'd come home. Hopefully, he would listen to her when she apologized. She missed him. She eventually fell asleep dreaming about visiting Forks with Edward at her side.

After his three hour long nap, he had tried to talk Em and Jazz into going for a few drinks. There were a few private clubs they belonged to which were open on Sundays. Everyone was sitting on the patio, taking in the warm September sunlight when he mentioned it. At first, both guys seemed to be open to the idea but Rosalie and Alice quickly stole their thunder. Turns out, they were still pissed off at all three guys for not being able to get a hold of them the night the world fell apart.

Carlisle knew what he was trying to do, he just was stalling to go home. "Edward, you need to go spend some time with Bell's."

"Yeah, besides, you have work tomorrow morning and if you're not there I'm going to come drag you into the office. My caseload is WAY to big for one person!" Rosalie said, only half joking.

"Seriously, dude, she comes home royally bitchy after working her ass off," Emmett said before really thinking, causing an elbow to the ribs from his fiance.

He had gone home, with the full intention of apologizing and telling her she could keep the diaper bag. It wasn't worth losing her over. When he'd gotten home, he'd opened the door quietly and heard her talking in the kitchen. When he realized she was on the phone, he quietly walked toward her, not wanting to interrupt. That's when he heard her say it. How unhappy she was. How she didn't belong here.

"_Sometimes I feel like maybe we weren't given a baby because God knew we shouldn't be together. He's different from me. His whole family is full of successful, wealthy people! They live in huge, beautiful homes! They wear designer clothes! Hell, one of them IS a fashion designer! He drives a Vanquish for Christ sake!" _

That's all he'd heard but it was enough. He knew she was talking to Jacob. Jacob was the _only_ person she was ever that fucking honest with. She wasn't even that open with him. Her own damn husband. Maybe it should have been her _beloved_ Jacob all along. Maybe she was right. Maybe she was just too different from him and his family.

Either way, it was clear that she didn't want him around right now. He had gone back to his car and had taken off. He couldn't go back to his parent's house just for everyone to throw him a damn pity party. He couldn't call Em or Jazz to meet up with him, Rose and Ally would have his balls. Instead, he found himself sitting at one of the two bars open on a Sunday that was close to home.

Three beers in he saw someone sit down beside him, turning on his stool, he shook his head when he saw who it was. "Hello, Mr. Cullen," Tanya said with a the look of the Cheshire cat on her face, "to what do I owe this honor?"

"Well, Miss Denali, maybe I just wanted a drink," he smirked, looking at the one girl and possibly the only person he had ever known his wife to hate.

Raising an eyebrow she replied, "In a bar, by yourself, on a Sunday?"

"I could wonder the same thing about you," he said, avoiding her question.

"You don't have to wonder, Edward, all you have to do is ask," she returned his smirk, running a manicured finger up his forearm.

"Why do I have a feeling like we're talking more about what you want to _do_ here than the question of what you're actually _doing_ here?" he asked, wondering what the hell to do. He'd known her almost his whole life, at one point she was best friends with his little sister. She was Ally's age and would follow him around every time she would come over. Emmett loved teasing him about it, that was, until she had gotten tits—which was about the same time the brothers had hit puberty.

Eventually, Edward, being the defenseless dumbass that he was, gave into the tempting blonde. He dated a lot in high school, lots of different girls, but it always came back to her. It wasn't that he thought they were 'destined to be together' or 'soulmates' or some shit like that. She had fallen hard for him and was always there, ready to snatch him up when another girl didn't work out.

Senior year was hard for him. He had moved back to Seattle after living with his Aunt Beth and Uncle Pete for almost the whole summer. As much as he loved them, they weren't why he missed Forks. He was head over heels in love with Isabella Marie Swan. The day he'd come back, Tanya was waiting there, ready to claim him as her own once again. He wouldn't give into her but she was like a deadly spider. The more he fought to get out of her web, the more she fought to wrap him up and keep him there.

Now, sitting in a bar, by himself, on a Sunday—just as she'd pointed out—he realized how tired he was of fighting. He was tired of mourning, tired of sleepless nights, tired of his unhappy wife, tired of Jacob Black, tired of just simply being tired.

"You know what I'm talking about, baby," Tanya now had made her way over his bicep and was headed for his chest. Just then, the bartender walked up. Edward's whole body tensed but Tanya's hand didn't move. _What if he knows Bella? He has to know who I am...I belong to one of the wealthiest families in Seattle._ "What can I get ya?" the old man asked, squinting at him.

"Jack on the rocks. Two of them. Make them doubles," Tanya answered without a second of hesitation.

She had pulled her hands away and looked over at him as he raised his eyebrows at her, "What? I'm just buying an old friend a drink, what's so bad about that?"

_A lot of things are bad about that. I have to get away from her before things get even fucking worse._ He went to stand up just as the old man set the drink in front of him. Tanya, as if starting to feel her web shake, turned his head so he was looking right at her. "I heard about what happened. Why don't you drink your drink and talk. You look like you could use both right now. Tell me what happened, tell me why you look like you'll never see the sun again."

Edward didn't know what to say. He had gone the last two weeks not talking about what happened. No one wanted to hear him _talk_ about it. Bella, his family, his friends, no one wanted to hear about the death of an innocent baby boy. He could talk to her, just talk. _There's nothing wrong with talking to an old friend, right?_ Taking a deep breath he warned, "It's a long, fucked up, unfair, bunch of bullshit story. You sure you want to hear all of this?"

"We're at a bar, by ourselves, on a Sunday. Start talking."

**I smell trouble...or maybe that's just Jasper Cat's litter box ;)**

**Anywoo, this chapter was not my favorite and I have some fun plans for the next one. Student teaching is officially in full swing and I intend to update every day if possible...but my fourth graders need me and I them. Therefore, if you are interested in this story, the more reviews I get the more likely I'll keep updating everyday. I hate to do this and I ADORE those of you who review after each chapter! I would just like to know people are enjoying this and I'm not wasting my time :] **

**Since this author's note is so long, is there anything anyone would want to see me put in? More of a certain person, theme, etc? I'll try to help you out! (nudge nudge) Tune in next time! LP xo**


	5. Chapter 5

**Woot! Snow day today! After doing my happy dance and snuggling up with my Edward Cullen blanket for a few extra hours of sleep, I realized I had all day to work on this little baby. There's a definite possibility that another chapter could be put up today...reviews will make that a lot more possible! Or not...but do you really want to take that chance? ;)**

**Shout out to the lovelies who've reviewed! That little happy dance was not only inspired by a snow day! Can't forget those of you who have turned all the free time I have into time to delete alerts from my inbox! It's overwhelming how many people are making me a favorite! Love you all! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 5**

"Now, herrre I am, talking to you. The beautiful blonde who my wifffe hates. I guesss the jokes on herr," he slurred, holding his glass up as if making a toast. After the three previous beers and two double Jack's on the rocks, he had finally finished his story. He hadn't cried once and was rather proud of himself. Yet he had to give credit where credit was due...liquid fucking courage. That's what this was.

He felt good. He felt angry. He felt good that he felt angry. Since the night the world fell apart, all he'd felt was devastation. Everything he and Bella had worked towards had fallen apart in less than twelve hours. He was angry with her. This was the first time he could remember being truly, completely, fucking pissed at her. Tanya was pushing the ice around in her glass, looking at him intently. _This isn't going to end well._"You wanna get out of here? Go for a ride or something?_Say no, Cullen! _His brain was begging him but his heart was too pissed off to notice.

Bella's eyes flew open, the house phone was ringing downstairs. She lay there, debating on whether to snuggle further into her warm bed or go answer it. Her warm bed, something she would never take for granted again, won the battle. Just as the phone quit ringing, she began drifting off to sleep again when she realized it was already dark outside. Looking over at the alarm clock she saw it was 1:47 am. _Holy shit. I just wanted to take a nap. _Her second thought was a little more worrisome. Her husband wasn't beside her.

Turning the bedside lamp on, Bella climbed out of bed, squinting against the light. He wasn't on the small couch in their too-large bedroom. She checked the nursery before heading downstairs. Everything was where she'd left it. The house phone was off it's base, sitting on the kitchen counter. In the front entrance, the only shoes waiting to be worn were hers. Jasper Cat was lying in front of the door, curled into the littlest ball a seventeen pound cat could curl into.

Throwing on her shoes and turning on the outside light, she sprinted through the September rain to the garage. The Vanquish was gone...her little Volvo looked as lonely as she felt. _Had he not come home since this afternoon?_ Heading back into the house, she grabbed the phone. Shivering from her wet clothes, Bella stood in the kitchen and dialed Edwards number. When there was no answer, she remembered the phone call from a few minutes earlier. She ran into their also too-large living room and checked the answering machine...nothing.

Knowing all three guys had work in the morning, she couldn't believe they would actually be out this late. Annoyed, she called Alice—who took a little longer than normal to answer the phone. "Hi!" Alice said cheerfully, obviously still as cheery in the middle of the night as she was during the day.

"Ally, it's Bell's, Do you know where they're at?"

"Where who's at? Bella, it's the middle of the night...what's going on?"

"The guys, they aren't home yet! Were you asleep?"

"Bell's, mine's right here. We're both sleeping." Before she could tell her not to, she heard a strange shuffling noise and then Alice talking to Jasper.

"Al, it's two in the morning, please, for the love of God, go to sleep!"

"_Edward and Emmett_ went out and never came home. Bella's on the phone," Alice replied, obviously annoyed with him.

"What the hell does this have to do with me?" Bella had to laugh, Jasper had always been the _most_ grumpy person when it came to getting sleep.

"Al, put me on speaker," said Bella, figuring maybe he wouldn't be as short with her as he was being with his wife. When she heard the phone click over she said, "Jazz, listen, I'm really worried. I know you're tired but you need to tell me if you know where he is. Someone tried to call and it might have been him or Emmett..."

"It's wasn't Emmett," Jasper drawled through a yawn, his southern accent thicker from sleep. "Rose would rip his balls off. Her and Ally wouldn't let us out with Edward today."

"Well, did he say where he was going?" Bella asked, balancing the phone on her shoulder and reaching for paper and a pen.

"No but Emmett might know. There's like two bars open on Sunday, they'll both be closing soon, if he doesn't come home I'll go look for him."

"Jazz, you really don't have to do that. You have work and I'm up already anyway."

"You shouldn't have to deal with this stress right now," Jasper argued. Bella never could get over how great a friend Jazz had always been to her and Edward both.

Alice chimed in, "I agree with Jazz. I'm coming over now. If he's still not home by the time I get there, we'll call and talk to Emmett. I don't want you to have to be alone."

"Al..." but she'd hung up. Now, Bella was not only worried, she felt bad for the two people she'd just gotten out of bed. Sighing, she tried to call him again, to no avail. Not wanting to wait for Alice, she decided to call and wake up Rosalie and Emmett. Emmett answered this time and was definitely not as chipper as his baby sister.

"Edward, man, this seriously better be _the_ most _fucking_ important call you've _ever_ had to make!"

"Em, it's me, he's not home. I'm guessing you aren't with him?"

"Um...that depends...,"Emmett stammered.

"Emmett," Bella said, trying unsuccessfully to hide the humor in her voice, "I know he's not with you. Do you know where he is? I can't get a hold of him."

"Who the hell is it, Em?" Bella heard Rose asking in the background.

"Bella. I think I may have just gotten Edward in trouble." He turned his attention back to Bella. "He mentioned something to Jazz and I. We weren't _allowed_ to go. What can I say, we're completely whipped. You can't judge us though because we have the final say, you women just don't realize..."

"Focus, Emmett! Do you know where he is or not?"

"Nope. He should be home by now though, the bars close at a little early on Sundays, don't they?"

"I don't know but...I have to go, Alice just got here."

"WAIT! You mean Jazz got to go out with Eddie and I didn't? Rose!" Emmett whined.

"No, Em, Jasper is at home in bed. Go back to sleep. Sorry I woke you guys up."

"Alright, call me when he gets home. If I don't hear from you in an hour, I'll go find and haul his stupid ass home."

"Thanks, Em. Sleep tight!"

An hour later and his sexy, green-eyed ass still hadn't made an appearance. "Bella, just do it. We'll feel so much better if that's all it is," Alice begged her, bouncing up and down on the couch.

"I don't want to wake up your mom and dad," Bella said adamantly.

"They won't care. Dad's probably on call anyway. Look, I don't know what happened today between the two of you but he seemed really flustered, if he ended up crashing there at least you'll know he's safe."

Bella sat wringing her hands, not replying. The truth was, she didn't want to admit to her mother and father in law that she and Edward were having problems like this. Taking a deep breath, Bella decided to bite the bullet and call. She at least had to know he wasn't dead. "Cullen residence." Bella smiled at Carlisle's familiar voice.

"Hey, it's Bella, um...is Edward by any chance over there?" she asked, shyly.

"No. He's not home?"

"Nope."

"Is he with the guys?"

"Nope, I've called everyone. Emmett, Jazz, Tyler, I even woke up Mr. Hale to get some of his coworkers numbers. I'm starting to freak out. Pretty soon I'm going to call my dad and tell him to call out a search party."

"Alright, listen, I'm going to call the hospital."

"Oh, God, Carlisle...if something happened..."

After he reassured her, she looked at Alice, defeated. Alice called Jasper and Emmett. When the group of them were assembled in her kitchen, Alice spoke first. "Alright. He's not in any of the city hospitals, he's not in the county jail or any of the surrounding counties, he's not at any of the bars, and we've woken up all of Seattle. I say we start driving. We'll split up and find him. He drives one of the flashiest vehicles in the state."

"I guess I just don't get where the hell he could be. We've called everyone that he's known..." Emmett's voice trailed off as he glanced sideways at Jasper who was shaking his head in a let's-not-go-there sort of way.

"Emmett Cullen, what do you know?" Alice said, spinning to face him.

When Emmett pursed his lips together, obviously afraid to talk, Bella turned to Jasper, "Jazz, please."

"Well, it's just that...there's someone...that we didn't call," Jasper said nervously.

"If you two don't start talking..._oh my, GOD_!" Bella blurted out when she realized who they were talking about. "No way! There's no_ fucking _way!"

"Let's go, Emmett," Alice said with purpose, catching on. "Jazz, stay with Bella."

"Alice," Bella called after her, "I'm...I don't know if I can forgive him for this."

"I know. We'll be back. With him. Though I'm not going to guarantee he'll still be in one piece."

"Remember the time Emmett decided he was strong enough to lift a car?" Tanya asked, laughing hysterically and spilling her glass of wine on the coffee table.

Edward nodded his head, remembering that day in the school parking lot. "He ended up in the hospital because he broke his wrist and pulled a muscle in his groin. When mom came to the school she couldn't even be mad at him. She'd just laughed and rolled her eyes."

Suddenly, they both jumped when three loud bangs sounded from the front door of Tanya's small apartment. Edward stood behind Tanya as she looked through the peep whole and cringed. "It's for you," she said, stepping out the way for him to open the door.

The first thing he saw was his older brother, who took up almost the entire doorway. Next, he saw Alice practically knock said older brother out of the way so she could slap her other older brother across the face. "Ali..."

"Don't 'Alice' me! You're just lucky you have all your clothes on! Have you lost your fucking mind, Edward Anthony Cullen?"

"What are you guys doing here?" Edward asked, peering down at her.

"God, are you drunk? Where's your car? Come on, we're leaving, give Emmett your keys."

"Ffffuck, thaat. I'll drive."

Tanya spoke up for the first time since he'd opened the door, "You're not driving anywhere, big guy. Em, here's his keys."

Taking the keys, Emmett shook his head, "He's a married man, Tanya. What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Oh, please, it's not like we've slept together...I mean...that was the plan..."

"It waass?" Edward asked, looking confused and began to peer at her now.

"Alright, bro, say goodnight to the ho. We're taking you home. You're coming for a ride with me. Alice, I'll get him sobered up before bringing him back. Rose is going to be sooo pissed when she sees he's not coming into work in...three hours."

The boys had made it a block before Edward grabbed Emmett's arm, "Pull over."

"What? Oh. You know what? I should just let you puke your guts out all over this nice leather upholstery you got goin on. You're lucky I don't want to have to smell it the whole drive back."

Emmett stood leaning against the drivers side as Edward emptied his stomach into a nearby ditch. Emmett's phone went off and it was a text from Alice. 'Get him here. NOW!'

As soon as the retching stopped, Emmett walked over to him. Alice said to take you home right now. You alright?"

"Yeah...I'm pretty sure there's nothing left to worry about," Edward replied, getting back in and resting his head against the cold window. After a few moments he asked, "How angry is she?"

"Angry enough that she was contemplating calling every hospital in the country to make sure you were okay. At what point did you think any of this was a good idea, dumbass. I mean, we've done some pretty stupid shit in the past, but come the fuck on."

"I miss him, Emmett. I want my son back."

"Alright, I'm going to say this to you because I'm your big brother and no one else has the balls. He's GONE , Edward. Bella isn't. I know you'll never forget him. We all know that. We don't expect you too. Bella's young. You're young. This was a freak accident, not a health issue. Try again. I know you'll never replace him but don't stop living your life because his was ended too soon."

"Em, she's going to leave me. If she's knows where I was tonight, she's going to leave me. I heard her talking to Jacob. She's not happy here. She doesn't think we should be together...and that's the reason she lost the baby..." Edward, in his alcohol induced state, had tears in his eyes.

When they pulled up to the house, the only word that came to Edward's mind was _chaos_. Emmett helped him out of the car and as they walked up the sidewalk, the sight before him made his stomach turn. Every light in the house was on. His best friend Jasper was carrying his wife's two large suitcases towards the driveway...right past him and right into Jacob Black's old Jeep.

Edward glanced over at Emmett—who looked just as confused—before taking off into the house. He ran straight up to their bedroom where he found Alice packing yet another suitcase. Bella was sitting on the small couch, Jacob kneeling in front of her. They were talking quietly as Bella twisted a tissue in her hand. "What the hell is he doing here!"

All three sets of eyes went to him, Jacob stood in a protective position in front of Bella. Alice quit folding clothes and walked around the bed towards him. "Edward, calm..."

"I asked what the fuck he's doing here!" He could feel himself shaking, he couldn't remember being this angry. He'd been so angry lately. "You're leaving me for him? Really? One fuck up and I'm done? No second chances? What do you want from me? Do you want me to come crawling on hands and knees and beg for you forgiveness? Bullshit, Bella, that's bullshit!"

Bella didn't say anything, she was sobbing now. Edward couldn't stop. "Oh, so now we're all going to sit here and feel sorry for you! What, you feel bad about leaving? Do you want me to give you a reason? Do you want to hear about how I fucked Tanya? Is that it? Well, I didn't! I've never ONCE cheated on you!"

"Edward, ENOUGH!" Alice cried, making him look at her.

"I want him gone, Alice! He's not taking my wife! He'll have to kill me first."

"This is the alcohol talking, please, just calm down."

Edward didn't calm down. He shoved past her, making his way for Bella. Jacob pulled her farther behind him, "You need to calm down. I'm not letting you near her until you calm down."

That's all Edward needed. He lunged for Jacob, shoving him against the nightstand. Jasper and Emmett must have heard the glass lamp shatter because they were both behind him in an instant, each one grabbed Edward and pulled him back. Between the alcohol, the rage, the hurt, Edward fell to his knees.

"Please, don't leave me. I know I've fucked up and I know you hate me but please, please don't do this Bell's. Just stay long enough to talk to me. I know there's a lot of shit going on but I can't..."

That's when he heard what Jasper had been trying to tell him since he'd flown into the house in that blind fit of rage. "Edward, calm the fuck down. Bella has to go with him. Charlie's in the hospital. Jake's been trying to get a hold of her but the phone's have been tied up from us trying to find your stupid ass."

Edward, completely broken and on his knees, looked from Bella to Jacob and back to Bella. He watched Jacob get up and walk over to his wife, taking her by the arm. "We really have to go. I need to be back to pick Leah up when her shift is over. Alice, is everything ready?"

"Is Charlie okay?" Edward managed to get out, picking himself up off the floor and sitting at the end of the bed, running his hands through his untamable hair. They'd had their disagreements in the past but Charlie was one of the most genuine men he'd ever met. Not to mention how ragged Bella was already feeling. If she lost her father...

"He's going to be okay but he really needs Bella right now. I've been trying to get a hold of her for hours now. After tonight, I think she needs him just as much."

"I'm coming with you. Someone needs to be there..."

"No," this was the first time he'd heard Bella's voice since he'd heard her on the phone earlier today. "Edward, I really need to do this on my own. I can smell the alcohol from over here. Get some sleep, sober up, calm down, and I'll call you tomorrow evening. If something happens with Charlie I'll let you know. After tonight, it goes without saying, you need to figure out what you want. I've realized today that maybe I need to do the same."

"Bella..."

"I love you, Edward Anthony Cullen, and if you love me you'll step back and let me do this."

"I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"I know," she turned to leave, looking over her shoulder as she came to the door, "I'm taking Edward Jr's blanket with me and two of the four ultrasound pictures. The other two are on the glider. I threw away the diaper bag...those pictures were all I wanted out of it."

**I for one can't wait to see where this little phone call is going to get them! **

**Until next time...maybe later today...review and subscribe :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**So, I did it. Two chapters in one day. Feeling spoiled? This just means you can't be too mad at me if I go a day without posting ;) (Hides behind her Edward Cullen blanket)**

**You can thank the one lovely person who reviewed for this chapter being up today. You freaking rock and you know who you are! Big thanks to everyone who's still subscribing and also those who keep coming back for more! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 6**

Bella woke up clutching one of the only three items she had packed herself. The first had been the ultrasound photos. The second had been the light blue baby blanket which had waited patiently in the cherry wood crib for a baby it would never cover. The third, was something Alice had raised her eyebrows at when Bella had wrapped the first and second items in—her husbands t-shirt. The only one he'd had left from way back during the first summer they'd met. He loved that shirt and she felt slightly guilty for taking it yet unable to leave Seattle without him completely.

Now, running her hands over the soft, worn out material, she thought back to everything that had occurred the night before...well, early this morning as it was technically seven o'clock later that evening. As much as what he'd said had been intended to hurt her, she realized for the first time in a long time that he was without a doubt being honest. There was something about a person when they were stark-raving mad. They said how they truly felt, too angry to filter it. After all this time, she finally came to terms with the fact that he hadn't cheated on her all those years ago. If only whether he cheated or not was still the only problem they had to deal with.

She would never forget her senior year at Forks High. It was the longest school year she'd ever had to endure. Jake was there and that was great but she realized that what was once a summer romance had turned into a full on, irrevocable love. When she'd met Edward at the beach that day, she'd had no clue who he really was—other than gorgeous. As the days went on, she began to get glimpses into what his life was like.

The first time he'd picked her up to go visit his aunt and uncle, he pulled up in a very new Volvo. Used to the kids she knew, who drove around their parents and older siblings handed down cars, she was more than surprised to learn that it was indeed his own car. He refused to allow her to pay for anything when they would go out, even if they were with a large group of people—something that frustrated her to no end. If that hadn't given her a clue of his financial situation, his aunt and uncle's house certainly had. It was a house on the outskirts of Forks that everyone dreamed of living in but everyone knew they could never afford.

By the time August had rolled in, they were exclusively a couple, much to Jake's disappointment. Edward had to go back to Seattle to get ready for school but talked to Charlie about letting him take Bella for the weekend. Charlie agreed, to this day Bella still didn't know how Edward talked him into it, and the only condition was Alice had to be with them. So, he left on a thursday, picked up Alice, and drove back to Forks to get Bella.

His actual home was even more impressive than his temporary one and Bella had never felt more self conscious about meeting a group of people—ever. The Cullens loved her from the moment they met her. Even now Edward joked that his family loved her more than him. If only everyone who'd been at the Cullen's that day loved her...

Tanya Denali had been sitting on the porch of his parent's home when they pulled in, deep in conversation with Rosalie and Emmett—who'd she already met earlier that summer. As soon as they had pulled up, Tanya ran up to Edward and threw her arms around him. Bella just stood back, taking in the expensively dressed girl who was now hanging on her man. Edward pried Tanya off of him after a curt greeting and pulled Bella towards him. "Tanya, this is my Bella...I mean...my girlfriend, Bella. Bell's, this is Tanya Denali...my...friend?" He said friend as if asking a question.

From that point on, Tanya had hated her. Not that the feeling wasn't mutual, it was, but Bella didn't act on it. The whole weekend, they couldn't get Tanya to leave, even Alice had become irritated with her. When it was time for Edward to drive her back so that they could spend their last school-free week together, both his siblings and Rosalie begged to come. Bella wanted to think that they were going because they would miss her too but had a feeling it was more to do with them wanting to get away from Tanya.

Bringing the old cotton shirt to her nose, she breathed in deeply, taking in his wonderful, musky scent. He was never one for cologne...said it gave him headaches...and Bella was fine with that. If she could find a way to trap the scent of Edward Cullen in a bottle she would be just as rich as his family. His family—she remembered now that she'd woken every member of it to find him last night. She wondered what they thought of her, if they thought their son and brother had made a mistake in marrying her.

Closing her eyes, she tried not to cry, remembering how hard that senior year at been for her. She had trusted him but hadn't trusted Tanya. Tanya was beautiful, a talented ballerina, and not to mention as rich as Edward. They could have been the perfect power couple. She still had no idea how he could have chosen her over Tanya and often wondered if he ever wondered the same thing. Especially that night long ago, that just this morning she had realized he hadn't been lying to her about.

Edward pulled himself up in bed, looking around and remembering the night before. He remembered what he'd done, Bella leaving, saying she left pictures for him. _Dear, God, I almost threw away my sons pictures. _Tears came to his eyes, he couldn't believe how much he'd cried lately, he never cried. He realized he no longer cared if it made him any less of a person, he was already the worst person he could ever be.

Looking down at the pillow he'd woken up hugging, he realized it had Bella's old fleece robe wrapped around it. He looked at the night stand and realized nothing was on it. Probably because he'd broken everything that had been on it with the help of Jacob Black's body. This was not good. Worried about Charlie he opened his phone and saw that he didn't have one call after he'd been found last night. Excepting that as news that Charlie was alright, he made his way downstairs to feed Jasper Cat and figure out which of his siblings he should call and apologize to first.

He walked into the kitchen and found the dust pan on top of his marble counter full of glass from their bedroom lamp. Alice. He'd call Alice first. After Bella had left, he'd cried for about a half hour. Alice, Emmett, and Jasper hadn't said a word, just cleaned up the mess he'd made, turned off all the lights, set his phone, water, and aspirin beside him, and Alice tucked him in. _Could I be more pathetic?_

It was now after seven that evening and he hadn't heard anything from Bella. Calling Alice he'd told her how sorry he was. "Edward, I'm not the one you need to apologize to. If you want to make it up to me, man up and take care of Bella. I'm not talking about buying her nice things and a beautiful house. I'm talking about showing her how much you love her. You don't have to prove that to me, I see it every time I'm around you. She's the one you need to convince. Oh, and one more thing, quit talking to Tanya!"

After he'd hung up with Alice he called Emmett. "Morning Sleeping Beauty," Emmett boomed sarcastically, "feeling any better there, sunshine?"

"Fuck you, Em. Seriously, though, thank you for last night. I royally fucked things up, haven't I?"

"That's putting it lightly, man. Have you talked to her yet?"

"Nope. Do you think I should call her? I mean, what if something happened to her on the way to Forks? What if Charlie's gotten worse? What if..."

"It serves you right to have to worry for awhile. You deserve it. What do you think was going through Bell's mind last night? You know, dad didn't even tell mom because he know how worried she'd be. We were all worried."

"I don't know how to fix any of this," Edward stated quietly, completely overwhelmed.

"I don't know what to tell you except lay off the fucking alcohol. You know I personally could be an advertiser for the shit but you can't handle it! One or two are okay but you take it to a whole new level. Just be more careful next time. You already make shitty decisions, why make it easier?"

"Well, thanks for that pep talk, Em. Love you, too," Edward said with a small smile. "Guess I should call dad then, huh? I didn't realize Bella had called him."

"Yeah, Bella also called a few of your coworkers, Tyler, and all the jails and hospitals in the state. I say just hang tight and wait for her to call you. Fight for her, man, not many would put up with your stupid ass the way she does. As far as we go, you would've done the same were it me last night. Just don't forget it!"

After drinking about three glasses of water, trying to rehydrate from the alcohol still in his system, he stood in the shower and felt some of his muscles relax from the hot water. Only some of him felt better, there were now two whole in his heart—first from his son and now from Bella. Flexing his muscles as if to take inventory on how broken down he was, he realized his abs were the worst off. He chalked it up to all of the sobbing and puking he'd done the night before.

He couldn't believe he'd gone back to Tanya's the night before. If he could have made a bigger mistake with Bella he didn't know what that mistake could be. Tanya had always been a huge problem for their relationship. She just refused to get over him. When her father cut her off from the families wealth, she had really stepped up her game with him. This wasn't the first time she'd approached him in the past couple years. He didn't know if she wanted him, his money, or just the chance to piss off Bella. The two had never gotten along. He understood why but that didn't make it any easier for him.

His senior year had been absolute hell for him because of Tanya's little games. He was constantly doing damage control, trying to prove to Bella that the stories Tanya would tell Alice about weren't true. He was fighting to show Bella how much he truly loved her, that it wasn't about sex, that she didn't have to worry about the money situation. He had no trouble providing for her. Tanya was the reason she chose to go to the one school where a scholarship would pay for the whole thing. He had offered to pay for the whole damn thing himself if she would stay somewhere near him in Seattle. It didn't work—because of one stupid night with the one and only Tanya Denali.

"Come on, Alice, you've been in the bathroom for two hours! We have to go! I have to pee!" Edward leaned against the front door shaking his head. This was the first weekend he wasn't going to Forks to see Bella since Christmas and he felt guilty. She had assured him it was fine, that she was going to spend the weekend with her mom, who'd flown in from Phoenix to take her shopping for a prom dress. Now, he listened as Emmett and Alice fought over the bathroom as they got ready to go to a party. It would be your typical drinking party, complete with cheap beer, liquor, a lot of puking, and teenage sex. Needless to say, he wasn't super excited about it. Emmett's friends little brother was having it, which was why Emmett was coming with them. Rosalie was busy studying and told him he'd be on his own tonight anyway.

An hour later, they finally pulled up in front of the house and Alice jumped out before Emmett could give her the big brother lecture about guys that he gave her every time she went everywhere. Edward never felt the need to add anything, Emmett pretty much covered everything—someone hurt her, they'd die. End of story. As soon as they were through the doors, Tanya ran over to him and gave him a hug. He frowned, her sister Carmen said she wasn't supposed to be there.

"I thought you were going somewhere with Carmen?" He had trouble hiding the annoyance in his voice.

"Well, I heard that you weren't going to that stupid little town. Honestly, I don't know why you like it there...it's full of poor people," she said absently, "Anyway, I figured maybe you'd like some company!"

"Uh...yeah, I'm just going to find Tyler. Have fun," he said, heading towards where his brother and Tyler were in the kitchen.

"Edward! Hey, I want you to meet someone," Alice jumped in front of him, pulling some poor guy behind her. "Edward, this is Mike. We're going to go for a ride to get coffee, we'll be back."

Big brother instincts kicking in, he pulled her back, "Um, no, you're not. Alice, you don't even know this guy!"

"Edward, don't be an ass! It's just coffee!"

"Yeah, I'm sure it's just coffee, Mary Alice Cullen!" he whispered harshly, still holding her arm.

"Please, Edward, I'll be fine. We're just going to grab a coffee and something sweet. We won't be long!"

Not knowing what to say to stop her, he looked around for Emmett when he heard Tanya speak up behind him, "Coffee sounds good, Ally! Doesn't it, Edward? We could go with you guys!"

Alice's face fell when she realized she couldn't really turn them down. Edward was annoyed but knew Tanya had just given him a reason to keep an eye on his baby sister and the guy who was checking out his baby sister's ass. Five minutes later, he was driving them in Emmett's hummer to the local Starbucks. Alice looking annoyed, Mike looking pissed, Tanya looking pleased, and Edward felt a strange mixture of all three emotions.

Everything was great until they were seated at a table and Tanya asked about his plans after high school. "I'm spending the summer in Forks before college starts. Then college and law school."

"You can't really be serious about that Fork's girl, Edward. She's not one of us. Do you see the clothes she wears? She just wants your money!"

"Alright, Tanya, I'm not going to sit here and listen to you talk about her like that. I'll be in the car when you guys are ready," Edward said, walking right out the door.

He watched them from the hummer, texting Bella to see what she was up to, "Sorry, baby, mom and I are getting facials! Call me later tonight! Xoxoxoxo"

Watching the three of them, he knew they wouldn't be in their long. It was obvious all Mike wanted was in his little sister's pants. Coffee had nothing to do with what he wanted. Tanya was just distractedly texting someone on her cell.

The whole way back, Tanya had been glancing at him and still sending texts to the mystery person. Edward really didn't care, just wanting this awkward Starbucks trip to end. It was clear Tanya was acting strangely, she wasn't happy with him at all. When he'd gotten back to the party, he did a few shots with Emmett and had a couple beers before heading upstairs to use this restroom. He was a little intoxicated but not too bad. After a quick piss he'd washed his hands and began to open the door. Before he knew what was happening, Tanya had pushed her way in as soon as the door had opened slightly.

Standing behind her was a girl who he knew Alice was friends with but for the life of him couldn't remember her name. He was a little too preoccupied with another situation—Tanya had pushed him back onto the toilet and was now straddling his lap. He opened his mouth to ask her what the fuck she was trying to pull. He didn't get to say it though, Tanya shoved her tongue in his mouth and grabbed his hair, pulling his head back. When he didn't think things could get worse, he saw the unnamed girl hold out her cell phone and point it at them.

He sat there paralyzed, in shock that she would stoop this low to break up him and Bella. That picture was going to be all over school before Monday even came. Finally regaining his composure, he stood up, pulling Tanya up with him. Not saying a word to her he walked over to the girl holding the phone, she was frantically pushing buttons and he got it from her just in time to see that she had succeeded in sending a message. She'd only sent it to one person, a number he knew so well, he could dial it with his eyes closed—Bella.

"Where did you get this number?" he demanded.

"You're sister," she said stepping away from her. Checking to make sure he'd deleted it and that she hadn't had time to send it to anyone else, he breathed a short sigh of relief before throwing the phone at Tanya—he knew it was hers.

"Alice!" Edward practically growled, getting the attention of her and Emmett both. After explaining what happened to them and a million apologies from Alice, he went out onto the porch to try to save what was left of him and Bella as a couple.

"Bella!" he exclaimed when he heard the phone pick up.

"This isn't Bella, Edward. This is Renee. How could you do this? I told her you didn't love her. I told her she was being silly thinking you could possibly care about her when you already have everything.

This is one time I hate having to say I was right!"

"No, no, you don't understand! Just let me talk to..."

Renee had hung up. Emmett, Tyler and Alice all stood there staring at him. It would take weeks for him to convince her to speak to him. When she did, she had only called to tell him she would be taking summer classes two states away at the college she had already planned to attend for the next four years.

Were it not for Alice, who missed her almost as much as he did, that may have been the end for them. All the money in the world couldn't buy him forgiveness, not that he hadn't tried. Alice decided to drive down with him so they could sit and talk about what happened. Bella agreed to the meeting and in the end, he really didn't think she believed him. It was clear that she had missed him, though. The second they pulled up in front of Charlie's she hugged Alice and then hugged him. The difference between the two is she wouldn't let him go.

Since he couldn't bring himself to let her go either, they stood their awkwardly before Alice tried to motion them inside. He picked her up and carried her in. Bella sat on his lap, with her arms around his neck the whole time. She apologized, he apologized, even Alice apologized. He continued to visit her as much as he could until she left for school in the middle of June. She explained that she couldn't afford college any other way and she refused to let him do it for her. She'd forgive him if he let her do this for herself. He'd reluctantly agreed.

Finally starting to shiver from being in the shower too long, he wrapped a towel around his waist and headed upstairs. He heard his phone go off and grabbed it off the bed. "Bella?" he asked, excitedly. Until now he'd wondered if she was going to call at all.

"Hey," she said quietly. He could see her biting her lip, standing in Charlie's small kitchen, clutching the phone.

"How's Charlie?" he asked her, not sure what to say.

"He's doing well. They did a bunch of tests on him all day today."

"Did you get any rest? I mean...last night..."

"I heard you take off, when you overheard me talking to Jake, I saw you drive away. I went to bed, hoping to talk to you about everything when you got home. I fell asleep and slept until about two when I realized you still weren't home. I got a lot of sleep yesterday, I had trouble sleeping today. Jake and Billy have been taking turns driving me back and forth from the hospital."

"You want me to bring down the Volvo for you?" Edward asked, concerned.

"No, no, I still have my truck. It's even more slow than before but it still runs," she laughed without humor.

"I don't want you driving that ancient death trap! At least let me rent something for you if you don't want the Volvo."

"It's fine, Jake and Billy are both coming with me tomorrow, I should be able to bring Charlie home."

After a brief moment of silence, he asked quietly, "When are you coming home?"

"Edward...about that...Charlie is going to need someone here, just to make sure everything's okay..."

"You're not coming home are you?" Edward asked, his heart sinking.

"No, I mean eventually...probably..."

"I love you so much, Bella. I really, really do. I could come down and stay with you guys. I can help you!"

"No! No, you have your career and your family..."

"You are my family! Bella, please."

"Look, after last night you obviously have some decisions to make. I know you still care about Tanya..."

"That was a mistake. A big fucking mistake that I will do anything to fix!"

"You can't just keep taking time off work. Rose's dad isn't going to wait around for you forever."

"So you're saying we should just live separately? Bella, you're my wife! I don't want to live without you like this!"

"Edward, I'm stepping back and letting you way your options. I don't want you to go be with someone else but you need to decide once and for all if that is what you want..."

"Bella, I know what I want! I want you!"

"Edward, I have to go..."

"Bella, wait! I didn't know! I didn't know those pictures were in that bag. I swear to you!"

With a fake laugh, Bella just said, "It's not about that anymore," before hanging up.

**You know the drill! Read, review, subscribe...blah, blah, blah... LP xo**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello, lovelies! No snow day today...boo...but I did write...my...first...lemon! Gasp! I hate writing them and I don't think I'm very good at it but I hope you enjoy it at least a little! ;) Be nice to me! I also kinda/sorta have a beta now...so I dedicate this first lemon to her! Cait, I love ya girl! **

**Thanks to my lovely reviewers, subscribers, and other inbox fillers! Please, please, review and tell me what you think about this lemon/chapter. I am nervous and need to know if I should just give up now...I know I have a lot of readers but do my readers like it? That's the question! How many of you know the disclaimer by heart? Anyway...**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 7**

Bella was helping Charlie. Bella was teaching a class of four kindergarten kids from the reservation, a profession she'd always loved and had her certification in. She did it for free, knowing the reason teachers were in demand was mainly because the reservation couldn't afford to pay them. Bella was coping. Edward...was not.

It was two months after Charlie's heart attack, almost three since she'd lost their son. He talked to her every day. It was just part of the routine. Get up, go to work, come home, talk to Bella, go to sleep, repeat. Except Sundays. Sunday had meant Sunday lunch at his childhood home since he would sit there and eat his baby food. This was the only time he'd spent with his two best friends since Bella had left two months ago. He hadn't even spoken to Tyler since...he couldn't even remember.

When Bella would call, she'd always tell him about her kindergartners. He knew everyone by name. Andrew, Caitlin, Cadence, and Trey had become her life. She always asked how he was doing, always said she loved him, but he could tell she was happier than she had been in a long time. He wanted her home with him more than anything...but how could he take this away from her? So he told her what she wanted to hear. That he was doing well, that he was spending time with Emmett and Jasper, and that he missed her.

The truth was, he really fucking hated life. He'd been down to visit her twice since she'd left. He'd forced her into keeping the Volvo and after some discussion, she'd driven him home. To his surprise, she had decided to stay the night. It was the first and last time they'd slept together in their own bed since Edward Jr.'s death.

It was now Thursday and he was thinking of driving down to see her again. Things weren't exactly right with her but they got along alright and he loved seeing her happy. He was quickly realizing that maybe it really was Seattle. He'd taken her away from everyone she'd known and thrown her into a life she wasn't used to having. He'd give anything for Bella, do anything for her. People always needed lawyers. Could he really do it, though? Leave his family and friends behind? The company that he'd come to love? If it meant being with her again, his answer was fuck _yes_.

It was crazy. It was spontaneous. It was completely fucking risky. He could lose everything but in return he'd gain so much more...Bella. He headed upstairs, packing up everything he could. His typical overnight bag, a suitcase full of clothes, and a couple of suits were now sitting at the bottom of the stairs. Walking upstairs to get some sleep, he had one day of work left for the week, and then he would go to Forks and convince Bella that this was a good idea. He could do this, he would do this, he had to.

The next day at work was possibly the longest day of his life. He contemplated calling Bella to tell her he was coming but decided to surprise her. Now, he was staring at the clock on his desk, wondering if anyone would notice him sneaking out early. Rosalie walked in just after lunch time. "You got plans for next weekend?"

"Um...not right now...Why?"

"It's kind of your brother's birthday," she said, as if she couldn't believe he'd forgotten. He couldn't remember what month it was let alone the day.

"Sorry, I've been really..."

"Weepy and boring? Yeah, I know, believe me. Anyway, we're all meeting up a LuShea's for dinner and then I'm sure Jasper and Emmett are going to want to go out after."

"Alright, what time?"

"We're meeting up at seven," starting to leave, she turned back around and asked quickly, "Look, I know you don't see her often but can you please try to get Bella to come? We all really miss her."

It came out rushed and Edward noticed she was standing there holding her breath. "Rose, I'll see what I can do. We're trying to work things out. I'm actually going to see her today."

"Thanks! Emmett wanted me to ask her but I figured it would be better coming from you. When are you leaving?"

"As soon as I can get out of here."

Rosalie smirked before closing the door and walking over to him, "Dad's in Port Angeles at a wine tasting convention. I happen to know both of your clients and the last thing they'd want to do is try to do anything business related on a Friday. Just saying."

With that, she turned and walked out the door before winking at him. He now understood what his brother saw in her. She could be a total bitch at times but she was a damn good woman. In less than a minute he was heading out the door, brief case in hand. It took a little under three hours to get to Forks. If he left now he could get there before four.

"Mrs. Cullen! Mrs. Cullen!" Cadence, the smallest of her students was bouncing up and down in her seat, more than excited to answer a question about the poem they were learning. Bella smiled to herself and watched as all the kids looked at her expectantly. She was happy here. Almost happy enough to move on after her world had ended three months ago but not quite.

When she talked to Edward, she would tell him about the kids and how much she loved being around the people she'd grown up with. She told him about her dad and how Emily and Sam were getting ready for their new baby. How Seth made the dean's list. How Jake was thinking of asking Leah to marry him. How happy she was. The last was a complete and total lie.

Every day with these kids was another reminder of her own child. She was hiding behind these kids, this reservation, her father. She was not coping. Not at all. As much as she'd always told herself that his family was his family, she knew they were just as much hers.

The first day she'd been there, after her call to Edward, Alice had been the first to call her. She said she was calling to tell her they all loved and were thinking about her and Charlie both. Bella knew Alice just simply missed her. They missed each other. Jasper had called that same night. Emmett and Esme had called the next day. Carlisle had been calling her every night, usually about an hour or so after she'd get off the phone with Edward. He claimed he was calling about Charlie, being a doctor and all, but she knew he was just checking up on her. She loved them all dearly.

It was almost four o'clock and she had the kids ready, book bags packed, and coats on. They were playing four corners, waiting for their mom's and dad's to pick them up. For the most part, they all came from pretty decent families. She'd grown up with most of their mom's and dad's. They weren't wealthy by any means but they were loved. After all the children were picked up but one, Bella threw her coat on and watched anxiously out the window of the small schoolhouse. "Cady, honey, did your momma say she was going to be late?" Cadence's parents were divorced and while her mother was a total sweetheart, her father was a total drunk. Quil Attera had been one of Jake's best friends growing up. Now, Jake rarely talked to him. Actually, Quil now spent a lot of time with Charlie, and it was strictly business.

Jake would be there soon to pick her up. They were going on a double date with Charlie and Leah. Yup, it was a Friday and she was hanging with her dad. She didn't really mind and was pretty tired from chasing the four kids around all day, it would be nice to have a relaxing evening. As soon as she'd finished that thought, none other than Cadence's dad pulled in. He was driving a vehicle that Bella had trouble allowing Cadence to even get into let alone be driven away. There was nothing she could do.

Taking Cadence's hand, they walked over to his car together. Bella made sure she was strapped in tight and that Quil didn't reek too badly of alcohol. When she had herself convinced that the little girl would be safe, Bella turned to walk away when Quil grabbed her shoulder. "I just wanted to say thank you for taking such good care of my little girl. I know that husband of yours isn't around," now Bella was trying to get away from him as he was still clamping down on her shoulder way too roughly, "if you ever need anything...you know...after school..."

Bella knew what he was hinting at and opened her mouth to tell him just what she thought of his little suggestion. Instead, he grabbed her head and pulled her to his _own_ mouth. She was about 5'8 and a little over a hundred pounds. He was over 6 feet tall and probably weighed double what she did. Too scared to move and praying Cadence wasn't having to witness this, Bella didn't notice the shiny black Vanquish pull into the parking lot and take off again. Finally coming to her senses, Bella raised her heeled foot and kneed him right in the balls.

"Mr. Attera!" she said, fighting to get her to let him go, even though he was holding her and clutching himself, "you'll let me go right the hell now or I will call child services and have that little girl taken from you before you can say 'after school'. Are we understood?"

"HEY! Get away from her!" At the sound of Jake's shouts, Quil finally let her go and walked around to the drivers side. Getting in, he took off before she could make sure Cadence was still buckled in.

"Bella! Are you alright?" Jake was looking her over like Quil had just beaten her up.

"I'm fine. He was just being a total pig. I'm going to talk to my dad about him at dinner. I think I might have a case to present to child services. I know he hits Cady's mom." Bella had always been taught about confidentiality, it was drilled into her head the entire four years of school but Jake was part of the tribe and everyone knew everyone else's business. It's not like he already didn't know.

"Are we still going to dinner?" Jake asked with a hopeful, yet sort of defeated look on his face.

"Why wouldn't we be?" Bella asked him, confused.

"Edward's here."

Looking around the parking lot, Bella turned back to him, confused once again. "Where?"

"I saw him pull out of here like a mad man a few seconds ago..."

"Well, that's just awesome," Bella said, pulling out her phone and calling him. The stubborn ass wouldn't answer.

Edward had driven four hours, mainly due to traffic, to convince his wife to consider getting a new place together. Starting over fresh. Instead, he'd arrived in just enough time to watch one of the guys Jacob was probably friends with stick his tongue down Bella's throat. That wasn't the worst of it, it might have been for some guys but not him, there was a little girl in the guys car. Bella really was moving on. _Did she really w__ant a child that badly?_

He was officially, totally, completely giving up. He was done. His phone started going off about five minutes after he had left the small town to head home. He saw it was Bella and threw the damn thing on the backseat. He had nothing to say to her. It had been weeks since they'd seen each other, months since she'd come to visit him, months since she'd seen his family, and even more months since they'd had sex. He was emotionally, physically and sexually frustrated. No wonder Bella always seemed so damn happy, she was probably fucking that guy.

He was flying, about half way to Seattle, when he saw a sign for a strip club. He hadn't been to one in years, not since his junior year in college. He pulled in, getting the attention of a group of guys. When people saw his car he usually got that reaction from them.

Five minutes later, he was sitting at a table, sipping a Captain and coke. The girls on stage were definitely not his type. Three songs in there was a girl that stepped up. She was about Bella's height with brown hair almost the same color as his wife's. No one could ever match that color exactly. Shaking this thought of his wife off, he watched the girl intently. He made sure he had enough cash on him and waited for her to finish her little show. She made eye contact with him a few times and unlike the other girls who'd done the same, he didn't look away.

As soon as she was done, she sauntered off stage and walked over to him. "See something you like?"

He smirked and held his hand out, "Edward Cullen, what's your name?"

"Candy."

If she looked surprise when he'd offered her his hand, she almost went into shock when he asked the next question, "What's your real name, sweetie?"

She looked down shyly and then back up at him, "Anna," she replied with a small smile.

"Alright, then Anna, would you be okay with going into a private room?"

Now she was almost speechless, "You're...I mean...you're...actually _asking_?"

He gave a sad laugh, "Anna, any guys who would go about this any other way, deserves a kick in the balls. I don't want to hurt you."

Anna led him to a small, private room where there was a large couch. A bouncer went to follow them in, which was to show Edward that he couldn't get away with any funny business. The shy girl surprised him by putting her hand up and shaking her head, "It's fine, Vinny. I know him."

The big, bald bouncer nodded his head and went back out of the room. Edward looked at her curiously. "He can be in here if it makes you more comfortable."

"It's okay. Judging from that car you drove up in and that wedding ring you're wearing, I'd say you're not out for just a no-touch lap dance. You're the only, and I do mean only man whose ever treated me that kindly. Now sit down and let me take care of you."

It had been so long since he'd had any sexual contact that he could barely sit still. He felt guilty but couldn't get the idea of his wife fucking that other guy out of his head. He sat back and allowed his other head to do the thinking. Anna started to do her routine. As he felt her unbuckle his pants, he closed his eyes and let her work his stiff dick.

It had been so long since he and Bella had been together this way. He missed her. All he could think about was how this didn't feel right. Even if his wife had moved on with another man, he knew it was wrong. He'd vowed to be faithful to her. While Anna took care of him, he was fighting an inner battle. One side said to just keep going—it wouldn't matter in the end. The other was telling him how much of an asshole he was being. He was a coward, taking the easy way out.

He gave in. Resting his head on the back of the couch and letting her do her thing. The only thing he could think of was Bella. He could remember his and Bella's first time...it was that last school-free week before senior year. He didn't want to rush her. He knew she was a virgin and he'd had enough experience to know he was going to hurt her when she decided she was ready.

They had been down at the reservation, having dinner with Billy, Jake, and Charlie. He was leaving the next day and Bella had been acting strange since he'd picked her up that morning. "Can we go down to La Push for awhile? Charlie's home and I want to be alone with you."

"Sure. It's a bit chilly tonight. Are you sure that's where you want to go?"

"Yup. Come on, I know a place that's pretty sheltered."

When they'd gotten to the beach, Bella took off running and he started to chase her. The Bella he knew came out halfway there and she stumbled, almost face planting into the sand. "Bell's! You okay?" he'd exclaimed running over and lifting her up.

"I'm fine, really, I promise."

Shaking his head he carried her while she directed him. There was a spot further back from the water that was almost surrounded by rocks. Once there, he set her down and noticed her shaking—he'd told her she would be too damn cold. Taking off his sweat shirt he was about to hand it to her when she pulled him towards her and kissed him...hard. This wasn't a sweet, let's-make-out-and-hope-we-don't-get-caught, this was a full on, nothing barred, kiss.

Before he knew it, he'd lifted her so that she could wrap her legs around his waist. After lowering them both to the sand, he realized his shirt was now on top of his sweatshirt. _When the hell __did that happen?_Bella was running her hands over his abs, licking his neck, biting his shoulder... "Bell's...baby...you...gotta...stop..." he stammered, trying to stop her before she pushed him too far.

But Bella didn't stop. She gave up on his clothes and decided to lose some of hers. She pulled off her thin long sleeved shirt and it as well joined his sweatshirt. Now, she was straddling him, wearing nothing but a pair of short shorts, a light purple bra...and he'd hoped...panties. "Woah...Bella..."

"What's wrong, Edward?" Bella asked innocently, bending down to nibble on his earlobe.

"Nothing. I just, I want to be sure..."

"I'm sure. I'm on the pill. Let's go." Now, she was trying to unbuckle his pants.

She was on the pill? How did he not already know this? More importantly, why was she on the pill? Had there been someone else before him? He had to know. As she continued to kiss her way down his neck, he thought of anything he could to get the will power to stop this. He thought of a freezing cold shower, of Charlie catching them, of Alice with that Mike kid—yeah, that one did it. With a deep breath, he rolled so that Bella was underneath and stood up. Looking offended, which was completely adorable to him, Bella was laying there with herself propped up on her arms.

"Are you alright?"

"No, I mean yes, sort of." He knew he wasn't making any sense, he always got flustered when he thought about her with other guys.

"Sort of? Come on, talk. What's up?"

"You're on the pill." He'd meant it to come out as a question but it turned into an accusation.

"Is that not a good thing? I don't get it." Now she stood up and walked towards him.

"Have you...have you been with somebody...else?"

"Are you kidding me right now? You're mad because you thought I slept with someone else? Who, Edward, who else would I have slept with?"

"I don't know, maybe Jacob..."

"Don't you dare fucking start this again! This June was the first time I'd seen Jake in years! I hung out with him for a few weeks before meeting you! You know that!"

"Well, sorry! I just thought that maybe your beloved Jake had gotten what he'd wanted!"

"Oh my, God! Edward, you stupid ass! I'm still a VIRGIN! You know what, have fun with Tanya when you get back tomorrow! You are such a hypocrite! How many girls have you been with? Don't even try to tell me Tanya was the only one! Don't fucking do it!"

"Fine. Three. I was with three other girls! Is that what you wanted to here? How about this? Not one of them were EVER good enough! They meant nothing to me! I wanted to wait with you! I wanted to take it slow! I just wasn't expecting you to be so aggressive about it!" He was standing face to face with her, both of them breathing heavily.

"I trust you! I know it's going to hurt but I trust you, Edward! I want you!"

That was all he needed. He grabbed her around the waist and slammed her against him. Kissing her fervently, he unbuckled his jeans and pulled his throbbing dick out. She felt so fucking good against him, he could have cum just standing there. Lifting her once again, she wrapped her legs around him and reveled in the friction her short shorts were causing.

Walking over to one of the large rocks, he pinned her to it and pulled off her shorts. To his surprise, she didn't have anything underneath them. He kept telling himself that if this wasn't what she wanted, if she tried to stop him, he'd be able to stop. He never had the opportunity to realize he was totally fucking lying to himself because she was throwing just as much sexual tension right back at him. Gripping her tight little ass, he lined himself up, looking at her.

"Is this okay? Tell me. Now."

She didn't tell him, she kissed him, which was more than enough for him to keep going. Holding onto her, he lowered her down. As he pierced her, she bit down on her lip, tears coming to her eyes. He couldn't believe how tight her pussy was. She dug her nails into his sides and he was lifting her up and down. He was shaking, fighting the growing urge to push her all the way down his shaft. After a few more moments, she started moaning, her hands running through his hair. When she bit down on his shoulder, he let her go, allowing himself to slide all the way in. She bit down harder and cried out. He felt her muscles clamp down, making her feel even tighter, he hadn't thought that could possibly happen. He came a moment later, shouting her name.

He opened his eyes, remembering where he was. The girl whose hand he'd just came into was still kneeling in front of him...what was her name...Amy? She was looking at him knowingly and he realized he'd just yelled Bella's name out loud. With red cheeks, he watched as she backed away, letting him clean himself up.

"How much?" he asked, pulling his wallet from his back pocket.

"Nothing."

He looked up at her, confused, "Wait...what?"

"Don't worry about in. Go home to Bella. I don't know who this woman is but I do know one thing. She's a very lucky woman. I've never gotten that reaction from any man before. It's a night of firsts," she smirked before walking away.

He sat in his car, thinking about what Anna had just said, he couldn't go home. Home was with his Bella and right now, his Bella was currently in Forks. He debated what to do. At a literal and figurative crossroads. If he turned left out of the parking lot he could head back to Forks and confront her about this other man. If he turned right, he'd go back to the emptiest house he'd ever had to face.

**Scared ya, didn't I? No worries, lovelies, I never could have written my first full-on lemon and have it involve Edward and a STRIPPER! I considered it...but this Edward lives in my head... and he would have been pissed. So we compromised ;)**

**Please review! Try not to be to mean. Although, if you want to review and be mean...I can probably take it :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the reviews! You guys freaking own me! I tried to keep this one a little lighter after yesterday's dick move by Edward...but as always...when it rains it pours. **

**Thank you to my pretty much 'official' Beta—Cait you freaking rock!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 8**

"Bell's, would you please just talk to him? The idiot's been standing on our porch, staring at that door, raising his fist, and NOT knocking for over twenty minutes now!"

Bella sighed, "Dad, if he wants to talk to me, he'll knock. Just leave him out there!"

She and Charlie both glanced out the front window in time to watch Edward raise his fist for about the fiftieth time that night—only to put it back down and keep pacing. He couldn't see them and had no idea they'd been watching since they heard his car pull up over an hour ago. It had taken him the other forty minutes to get out of the damn car.

Her dad must have realized she wasn't going to put her husband out of his misery because he sighed and walked over to the door. He opened it just as Edward raised his fist again. Bella would have laughed but didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

"Edward, for the love of everything good in the world, either knock or get the hell off my porch," Charlie tried to sound menacing but Bella knew he was more amused than anything.

She then watched as Edward turned beat red before moving his still-raised wrist, which he knocked against the door frame...giving Charlie a please-don't-kill-me smirk. Bella let herself smile at that one. After all, it was at Edward's expense. Charlie moved to the side, motioning towards Bella before heading to the kitchen.

"What do you want, Edward?" Bella asked, unenthusiastically as soon as he was through the door.

"I, um, are you, seeing, um, somebody, who isn't, um, me?" It came out as a question, which by the time he'd gotten to the end, Bella was pretty sure he wasn't sure if he'd started out asking a question or if he was just confused.

Bella had to look away so he wouldn't see her smile. She'd never tell him but he was at his most adorable when he was flustered like this. He was running both hands through his hair, which was standing on end since she'd watched him pull at it for the past hour. Regaining composure, she realized what he was asking through his barely coherent mumbling.

"Really, Edward? Really? You saw me with Quil earlier today didn't you?"

"Is that his name?"

"He's Cadence's _dad_!" Bella exclaimed, as if that explained everything.

"So, what, are you playing mommy now? Do you want a kid that badly? Is that why you're staying here? They're your charity cases?"

"Those kids have helped me heal from losing our son a hundred times more than you ever have. I have to play mommy everyday. It's my job. In fact it's called acting as _loco parentis_. I am responsible for these children and make decisions that are based on keeping them safe. I work with kindergarteners! I spend my days wiping noses, teaching the alphabet,tying shoes, zipping coats, comforting, and showing those students that no matter how hard life is at home I'm there for them for eight hours five days a week! As far as charity cases go, isn't that what you think of me as? The poor girl who grew up on an even poorer reservation?"

"Bell's, I never thought of you like that! I'm sorry, I just want you to come home and I'm jealous, alright? I'm jealous of a bunch of five year olds because they see my wife more than I do!"

"Edward, do you hear what you just said?" She said this dryly, raising her eyebrows, "You're jealous of a bunch of five year olds? Edward, do us both a favor, just go home."

"No, I came to talk to you and dammit, I'm going to do it! Are you dating this Quil guy?"

"No! Quil Attera is a DRUNK! He picked Cadence up today and shoved his tongue in my mouth! I called child services on him today! You just came at the wrong time! If you'd stuck around, maybe _you_ could've helped me instead of Jake!" She pushed passed him, on her way to her room, wanting to be alone—hoping he'd get the hint.

Of course he didn't. He followed her right into her bedroom, a room he'd spent many nights sneaking into. "Bella, I'm sorry! Look, I saw you two and over reacted and I should have been there to help you but I wasn't and Rose wanted me to ask you to Emmett's party and I was going to quit my job and move to Forks and Rose told me to leave early and there was a stripper and I wanted to go home..."

On and on he went, blabbering out a big run-on sentence that made Bella cringe. She had to deal with the kids talking like this all day...she really didn't want to deal with..._Did he say _stripper_? _"Wait! Did you say stripper? Why was there a stripper?"

Just then, Charlie cleared his throat, standing at her door. "I'm going to bed. I guess I can't really stop you from staying the night—you are her husband," he said to Edward, "but I heard the word stripper. No funny business, alright? Oh, and don't kill each other, I don't want to have to do all that paperwork on a Saturday."

Before Bella could react, Charlie turned and walked away. Edward looked towards her with a small smirk, "I think he's warming up to me."

"Oh my, God! Edward, tell me, why was there a stripper?"

"I was mad. I'm frustrated. Bella, when's the last time you even kissed me...that you even hugged me? I know you lost a child but I did too! Now I'm losing my wife. If you plan to just let me wait around for you forever that's a bunch of bullshit and you know it. I'm gonna leave, Bella. I don't want to do this anymore. If you still love me, tell me now. If not, dammit, Bella I'm gonna leave."

He was practically begging her, she'd never seen him this upset. She wanted to run to him, to wrap her arms around him, to kiss him, to never let him go. She stepped towards him slowly. When they were finally close enough to touch, she reached out and grabbed his hand. He pulled her towards him, touching his lips lightly to hers. "Bella, please come home."

"I can't right now," she whispered just as quietly, "I've fallen in love all over again with this place. When I agreed to move to Seattle, I thought that was what we both wanted and apart of me does think that's what I _did _want. I'm happier _here_."

"Bella, I've done everything I could to make you comfortable. I'd do anything for you and you know that! My family misses you almost as much as I do. Em and Jazz are basically the only two friends I give a shit about. I don't know anyone here."

"Edward, you go to work EVERY day and leave me by myself. I understand because you need to work. You work a lot of long hours just so we can live in our ridiculously large house! Don't you think it's a little ridiculous to have a two-story, four bedroom, three bathroom, two living room, two office, one insanely large kitchen, house? You drive a Vanquish! You're so wrapped up in your own money that all you think about is work. That shouldn't be what life is about! I'm the only one out of your entire family who isn't working!"

"Bells, you got pregnant right after the wedding! We were married right after you were done with school! You said it yourself that it would be difficult to teach all day and be pregnant. I don't want you to have to work if it means stressing you or the baby! Oh, and that big house I'm so supposedly obsessed with? That was for the kids I'd planned to have with you! I wanted a big house for a big family! Remember talking about this when we bought it?"

"Planned. As in past tense?"

"This is the first time we've touched each other like this in months and you think I still have those same expectations? Look, I really don't want to talk about this right now. I came here to talk to you, to try to convince you to let me come down here and find a house for us. No more of this living-in-separate-places-bullshit. If you aren't going to come back to Seattle then I'm coming here!"

"You can't just leave your job and your family! You love what you do!"

"I can work here! People always need lawyers! We can buy the smallest house we can find..."

"Edward, no," Bella whispered.

"What do you mean 'no'? You're just not coming back and I'm not coming here? Bells, if you don't compromise with me than I...I..."

"Fine! What if I come for the weekends? Give me until Christmas to figure out if this is really okay. I'll be done teaching for three weeks then and we can figure out where to go next."

"Alright, weekends and Christmas. I can handle that...for now. Bella, if this doesn't work out though...if things get worse...I..."

"What? Than what, Edward?"

"I want a di...a div..."

"Don't say it. Let's just see how things go."

With a small smile, he nodded his head and hugged her tightly before kissing her forehead, "Sounds like..."

Bella's phone cut through the first loving moment the two had had in months. Annoyed she gave him an apologetic look while he sat down at the end of her bed. "Hello?"

"Bells, it's me. We have a problem and I kind of need your help. Quil beat up on Cadence's mom. My dad's calling Charlie as we speak."

Shocked, Bella stood there, not knowing what to say. "Is she going to be okay? How bad did he hurt her?" Edward's head shot up as he gave her a questioning look. Figuring it would be easier for her and Edward both if she just let him listen to her and Jake's conversation she switched it to speaker phone.

"Kristina's in the hospital. It's pretty bad. Broken ribs, fractured cheek bone, sprained wrist, I mean she's going to be out for awhile."

"What about Cady? Is she with Quil now?" The thought made Bella sick to her stomach.

"No, we're at their place now. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Cady's playing with Leah outside. The rest of the guys are trying to get Quil to calm down until Charlie gets here. The problem is, we have our hands full as it is and Leah has to leave for work pretty soon. I was wondering if maybe, you could possibly, I mean I don't want to burden you...it's not like you're a regular teacher...everyone down here knows you..."

"Jake, I'm on my way. Get her ready."

"Thanks, Bells!"

Looking up at Edward she cocked an eyebrow. "So, you staying the weekend or what?"

"You'd want me to?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind spending it with me and Cadence."

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Bells!" Charlie called out, "Billy just called me. I assume Jake called you."

He stood at her door once again. "Yeah dad, I'm going to drive myself down to get her. She's been through enough. Poor little thing doesn't need to be brought here in a police cruiser."

"I'll drive," Edward spoke up, Charlie nodded before walking away.

"Your car isn't exactly kid friendly."

"I'll drive the Volvo. I am capable of that. It used to be my car."

"Fine, let's go."

Edward stopped the Volvo in front of one of the smallest houses he'd ever seen. He used the word 'house' lightly. This was more like a fucking cabin. He watched as Bella shoved her door open and stepped out of the car. "MRS. CULLEN!" the tiny girl yelled, wrapping her little arms around Bella's legs.

"Hi, sweetie! Did Jacob pack some stuff for you?"

"Here it is," Leah said coming out of the house, "clothes, some toys—she doesn't have very many, and a little money for food."

"Oh, no, keep the money. Cady's mom needs it more..."

"Bella, you don't have any money..."

"Don't worry about money," Edward said, stepping out of the car. He wasn't sure who Leah thought was driving but he was definitely not that person.

"Edward?" she gasped, looking at Bella with wide eyes.

"Long story, Leah. I'm gonna get her home. Let Jake know I'm still in for tomorrow. I'll just be plus two."

"Alright...yeah...anyway, the money is from Jake and I. Just take it in case you need it."

Bella looked back at Cady once they were about a mile away from home. She was out cold. Her little head bobbing up and down on the bumpy road. Bella was just wondering if she should prop her head on a small hoodie she had in the backseat when Edward spoke. "Bells, you know money isn't an issue."

"Yes. It is. I'm not going to make you pay for Cady all weekend. Charlie and I can manage." When he went to argue, she shot him a look and he'd decided to shut up. He'd seen a charge on his credit card statement last week that was from a common department store chain. He assumed it was from her and didn't bother to ask her. She could have anything she wanted. He'd buy her the whole God damned town of Forks if she'd let him.

He wasn't exactly rich on his own. While he did work his ass off to keep the amount of money he did have as a substantial sum, he also was born into it. If his top doctor of a father wasn't enough, his grandfather had left him millions of dollars in a trust fund he'd had no clue about until he'd graduated college. Now, working as a lawyer in a city like Seattle, he was doing well in supporting himself...and his wife. He had no complaints.

His Bella wasn't the type of girl you could buy. He'd learned that years ago—hell, he'd learned that the first time he took her with a group of her friends to the movies. She insisted on paying for herself even though he knew she'd worked some seriously long hours at a local daycare. He felt awful watching her pull out her wallet to make sure she would have the money to go. She worked so hard but between paying for gas, her cell phone bill, and car insurance she had nothing left for herself. When they were married, he had to beg her to drive the Volvo. Now, he realized it probably needed new breaks and an oil change...about three months ago.

Pulling up in front of Charlie's, they got out and he opened the driver's side back door. He lifted the little girl out. She let out a small sigh before nuzzling into his neck and falling back to sleep. Bella made her way around the car, the bag from Leah in her hand. "She's really shy with new people."

"She's fine, Bella, where should she sleep?"

"Ugh...Charlie has an air mattress. I'll blow that up for her and put a bunch of blankets down."

Twenty minutes later they had the little girl wrapped up like a burrito, sleeping on an air mattress twice the size of Bella's own bed. They were looking at each other awkwardly, realizing they didn't have the little girl to distract them from each other. "Come on, let's go downstairs."

Charlie hadn't gotten back yet, it was about nine thirty. She made them both some hot chocolate and they sat across from each other, neither knowing what to say. "I'm sorry I said that the kids were charity cases. I didn't realize until tonight just how little they had."

"That's just it Edward, you don't realize how _much_ they have. If it weren't for Quil, Cady and her mom would be really great. Just because they aren't living in mansions or driving around expensive foreign cars doesn't mean they're not happy. They're kids, Edward, they don't know the difference between being rich or being poor. They just know they love to play, they love their parents...they love to be loved back. Sure you grew up in a loving home but you also had everything. Your world is just as foreign to them as theirs is to you."

"So what are we doing tomorrow night with Jacob?" He wished he hadn't brought the money issue up again.

"The bonfire. We all get together and exchange stories and things. Kind of an informal tribal meeting. Hopefully, Cady's mom will be able to join us and take Cady back home. Quil won't be getting out of jail anytime soon. You'll like Kristina, Cady's mom, she's really sweet. I've known her almost as long as I've known Jake."

Kristina Attera was out of the hospital the very next day—just as Bella hoped. While Cady liked Edward well enough, she was shy and Bella knew she was uncomfortable with him. Made sense when you thought of who her father figure was. Cady and Caitlin were now running through one of the fields on the property they had gathered on. Even Charlie had decided to join in the festivities. They cooked hot dogs, made mountain pies—the little ones made mud pies, they drank beer, told jokes, and in time everyone had talked about what needed to be said.

They all thanked Bella for the job she was doing with the kids. They discussed Quil's recent jail time. They talked about their almost non-existent budget. It was sad. They were considering closing down the small schoolhouse and sending the kids to Forks Elementary—the teenagers on the reservation already went to Forks High. It was one thing if the little ones were learning what they needed to but it was getting more expensive and it wasn't fair to deny them a good education. This news was devastating to Bella. From preschool to second grade she'd gone to the reservation's school—then she was shipped off to Phoenix.

"How much?" Edward asked, all business, to Billy Black.

"For what?"

"To keep the school open."

"Between school books, supplies, maintenance...too much. That's how much."

"What if I could help?"

The entire group of people had grown quiet. Bella didn't know how to react to this. She'd hated when he spent money on her but this wasn't on her—this would benefit everyone. She was just as shocked as everyone else.

"Mr. Black, I could donate everything. Bella can even help you interview other actual certified teachers."

"We couldn't ask..."

"No. I insist. Even though my Bella isn't exactly part of the tribe by blood, you've accepted her. This place is close to her heart. When she moves back to Seattle with me, at least she'll know this place was being taken care of, especially if she did some of the hiring herself."

There it was. She knew he couldn't be doing this solely to help anyone. He was expecting her to move back with him. Trying to pretend she was okay with what he was doing, Bella smiled and nodded along. Inside, she wanted to jump up and strangle him. Excusing herself, Bella got up and walked up to Billy's. She was on the porch before she realized Jake was behind her.

"Bells! Hey! Are you okay? You look upset."

She started crying, not really knowing why. She was angry and sad at the same time. It felt so right being with Edward but she really had no idea how this marriage was going to last. She blamed no one but herself. She never should have come back here. It took until that last thought hit her to realize how close Jake was standing beside her.

Stepping back, she looked at him suspiciously before telling him the truth. "I think I made a mistake."

"A mistake how?"

"I don't know. Coming back to Forks. Maybe leaving Forks to begin with? I really don't know. I just don't feel like anything is the way it should be right now. It's like I've been living two separate lives."

"The question is which life makes you the happiest? Is it enough to walk away from the other?"

"I don't want to walk away from anything!"

"Bella are we talking about any_thing_ or any_one_?"

Defeated, Bella sat down at the top of the stairs, head in her hands, "I don't know, Jake. Last night, Edward brought up, well he tried to bring up...divorce."

"Are you thinking of divorcing him?"

"I don't know what I'm thinking! I'm just confused."

Edward was listening to the two of them as he walked up to the red, wooden house. Bella was holding her head in her hands, looking exhausted. Jake's back was to him as he was talking to her intently. When he heard Bella say that one word...that evil, nasty, little word, he could have died inside. He couldn't believe after all they'd been through she was even contemplating it. Had their son been born he would be a few months old and none of this would even be an issue—he was sure of it.

He wanted to run to her, scream, pound his fists, throw her into the Vanquish and drive them both back to Seattle. Instead, he stood there, reminding himself that he was the one who'd brought up that vile word just last night. _He_ was the one with the stripper. _He_ was the one who had fucked up way more than he could fix.

So he just stood there and listened. Praying that he could right his wrongs before it was too late. Could it really work out between them ever again? He headed towards them, hoping to get her to listen to him. She was right, they were from worlds that were foreign to each other. That didn't mean he didn't love her. He loved her more for it. He had almost reached them when he heard Jacob respond to Bella telling him she was confused. One sentence. One sentence to make his heart stop. After all these years, Jacob had finally fucking said it. The first crack in his I-just-like-her-as-a-friend facade. "If you leave him, I'll leave Leah." _Holy. Fuck._

**Oh shit.**

**Well, lovelies I've done it. 8 chapters in 7 days. I'm going to keep writing because as I've said before, you own me BUT I am having a much needed night with my girls coming up tomorrow. I have the outtake of the 'story for another night'—the drunken story of how Jasper Cat ended up with Edward. IF I get enough reviews, I will post it. If no one wants to read it, it'll stay between my Beta and I. So, show me some love and I'll show you what we all know you're curious about. It won't be as doom and gloom and I think we all need it :)**

**LP xo**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanks for the reviews my dears! You rock my world! So, here it is. I won't make you wait :) Remember-this is an outtake! It's not exactly a chapter but I want the chapters to line up with the title...I'm OCD like that!**

**Chapter 9**

"**A Story for Another Night"**

Edward woke up and immediately regretted opening his eyes. He felt like his head would explode any second. Lying on his stomach, he reached up and grabbed both sides of his head—as if that could keep his skull from shattering. At the same time he realized his ears were ringing, he noticed the large puddle of drool he was now resting his face in.

He did what any other person would do—he flipped the pillow over and tried to go back to sleep. When the light was too bright even with his eyes closed, he decided to attempt waking up his roommate. Jasper Whitlock was about three feet away from him in his own bed, snoring loud enough to justify a noise complaint to the police. He looked at his clock and realized it was almost noon. _What day is it?_

Between the light, the ringing, and Jasper snoring, he decided to wake the fucker up before his eyeballs fell out. "Jazz," he called hoarsely before clearing his voice and trying again, this time much louder, "Jazz!" When the snoring didn't waver, Edward glanced around for something to throw and grabbed a pillow. It landed right on his face.

Jasper stirred and looked to be in the same shape Edward was, "Fuck you, Cullen."

"What day is it, asshole? It's after twelve."

"Friday. Wait, no, Saturday?" He asked.

"I'm asking you."

"Look at your fucking phone," Jasper said before turning over to face the wall away from his roommate.

"Too bright," Edward half moaned.

"Man, what the fuck is that noise? Make it stop!"

"What noise?"

"What do you mean 'what noise'? How can you not hear that?"

Edward stopped feeling around for his phone and listened...he heard it to...a high pitched squeaking sound. Reaching up, he attempted to pull the shade down over the window but only succeeded in pulling the whole curtain rod, drenching Jasper in light. "Jesus, Cullen!" Now Jasper sat up in bed, obviously pissed. "God, what the _fuck_ is that noise?"

"Why the hell am I still wearing my shoes? Why are we fully dressed...I smell like a fucking ashtray," Edward rambled on absently, sitting on the end of the bed, his head in his hands.

"Is that your phone?"

"I don't know, I can't find it. Oh, wait," Edward then realized that was the strange bump that'd been digging into his ribs all night, "found it. It's off. Check yours."

"It's on but it's not making that fucking noise. It's definitely Saturday. Man, you better get showered and changed, your woman's coming today isn't she?"

"Oh, fuck," Edward muttered, pushing himself up and taking a minute to steady himself. This was the worst hangover he'd had since his twenty first birthday. The noise was getting louder. Grabbing a clean pair of boxers, a light blue button up shirt, and a pair of black cargo pants, he went into their bathroom and started to run the shower. After the best piss he'd ever had, he came back out into the room to text Bell's and make sure she was still coming.

Jasper was wondering around the room, putting his ear to the wall, looking under the bed. "Dude, seriously, what the _fuck_ is that noise?"

Edward reached down and grabbed the hoodie he had worn the night before, throwing it on the bed. He noticed the front pocket was heavier than normal. Not thinking anything of it, he turned to go back into the bathroom when he heard Jasper gasp, "What the fuck?"

Turning around he saw him staring down at Edward's bed...at a little brown ball...that was moving...and making that noise. "Jazz, why the fuck is there a kitten on my bed?"

"It's your bed. You fucking tell me!"

"Is there a collar?" Edward asked.

"Nope."

"Where did it come from?"

"Your sweatshirt," drawled Jasper.

"Shit. Bella's going to be here in an hour. She's bringing my sister. Girls like kittens. They can figure out what to do with it."

"Should we like feed it or something?"

"I highly doubt that thing is going to like Ramen noodles or beer and that's all we've got."

Ten minutes later, Edward came out of the bathroom. "Do you remember what happened last night?"

"Most of it."

"How much is most of it?"

"Well, I know we started at the Gray Bar. Got bored. Went to Chrome. Left there, went to the Keg, then things start to get a little blurry."

"You don't remember me putting a kitten in my hoodie pocket?"

"You don't remember _putting_ a kitten in your hoodie pocket?" Jasper asked, rolling his eyes.

The girls arrive right on time, just as Jasper was out of the shower. Edward flung the door open as soon as he saw it was them and pulled Bella into a tight embrace followed by a passionate kiss. Alice stood there annoyed, arms folded, before tapping him on the shoulder. "Um, I know you don't want to grope me like you grope her but you could at least hug your sister, asshole!"

Letting go of Bella, he grabbed Alice up and carried her into the room, before dropping her right on the bed. Forgetting all about the little fur ball who was currently curled into a ball in the same hoodie pocket, Edward was surprised when he heard Alice gasp.

"What's wrong?" Bella was standing behind him, giving Jazz a hug and a friendly peck on the cheek.

"He's completely, totally, freaking _adorable_!" She squealed, getting Bella's attention. For a second, Edward thought she was talking about Jasper who was messing with his phone and _totally_ checking out his roommates little sister.

Bella still wasn't saying anything to him, usually she talked nonstop, something wasn't quite right. "Who are you...oh, yeah..."

"What did you name him?" Alice asked excitedly, picking him up and petting under his chin.

"How do you know it's a him?" Jasper asked.

"Do you really need me to explain that to you, Jazz?" Edward laughed but frowned when he realized his best friend was looking for a reason to talk to Alice.

Giving them the chance, with the strictest of supervision, Edward turned towards the love of his life. "Angel, tell me what's wrong. You're acting strange."

"You don't remember do you?"

He thought and thought. He hadn't missed her birthday. Their anniversary was last month. What else could he be forgetting? Then it dawned on him, he didn't remember _a lot_ from last night. _Oh shit, what did I do?_

"You don't remember," she stated flatly. Pulling out her cell phone, she rolled her eyes and after hitting a few buttons held it out. Edwards voice came over the speaker. "Hey, baby," he slurred, "I just wanted to call and let you know I love you because...I love you. Yeah. I love you so fucking much that I love you. I lov..."

Bella hit a button and his voice stopped. She smiled and shook her head. "Edward, that went on for almost fifteen minutes. You literally called me at two am and professed your love for me. It was hilarious but sweet at the same time. I'm pretty sure I played it for everyone who lives in my dorm this morning when I got it."

Jasper and Alice were both laughing hysterically. He looked around at the three of them. "I thought you were going to tell me I did something stupid."

Now, Bella's expression changed back. Edward frowned, "Bells, what did I do?"

"I didn't think you would remember, I knew you were drunk...I don't blame you for anything or hold anything against you."

"Bells, I'm freaking out. Baby, what the hell did I do?"

He watched as she exchanged a look with Alice before saying, "Why don't we go for a walk?"

_Oh, God. Had he been mean to her? Had he cheated on her? Was she breaking up with him? Think, Cullen, think._

He followed Bella out of the dorms and down the three flights of stairs to the outside. Finding and empty bench, she sat down, and he followed suit. "Edward, last night...you called me after the message I just played...and you left another one. I'm going to play it for you but I promise I don't expect anything. I know you were _way_ drunk."

Edward gulped. What if he'd done something unforgivable? Would she walk away and not look back? He loved her so, so much. If she didn't leave him, he vowed to prove that to her...every day for the rest of his life.

"Bells, it's me, baby." His words poured from the phone again. "Jazz and I just got back. I have something for you when you come tomorrow. I don't want to tell you what it is but I think you'll love it. It's really cute and furry. Yeah, it's a kitten. I just told you because I could. Anyway, I found this little kitten and I think you'll love it. I just hope you'll love it for the rest of its life. I hope that it could be that lucky...to be loved by you forever. So, tomorrow, when you come, I'm going to give it to you. I think it's a girl but have no idea. Bell's I want you to love me for the rest of my life. I want you to marry me. Please, please say yes."

Edward sat there staring at her. Wow. Now he understood why she seemed so unsure this morning—he'd asked her to marry him and she knew he couldn't remember it. His Bella had always been unsure of herself, never had quite the confidence she should. At this moment, he wanted to wrap her in his arms and not let her go until she never again doubted herself. He also realized he just simply never wanted to let her go. She always thought she had nothing to give but he was the one who couldn't live without her. The last and final thing he realized was that the secret was out.

"Bella, come with me, let's go grab something to eat from the cafeteria. I promise you, we'll finish this discussion very, very soon."

With a confused look, Bella followed him. He sent Emmett a text telling him to get to the dorm as soon as possible and to bring Rose. Emmett didn't ask questions. After they both picked at the same bagel and sipped a part of a coffee, he led her back to his room. Emmett and Rose were standing outside his door about to knock.

"Hey," he called out to them, coming to their side. He pushed the door open and let the girls go in first. He ran right into Bella as she stopped suddenly. Jasper's bed was raised up a little, the two beds were meant to be bunk beds. He now had Edward's little sister's back pushing into the side board, both of them still standing—which was lucky for Jasper, and they were caught up in the most disturbing act of public affection he'd ever witnessed. His best friend was rounding second base with his little sister.

They broke away, knowing they'd been caught. Jasper lucked out once again. Edward was too flustered with what he was about to do to say anything. Walking over to his desk he reached into the top drawer and turned to Bella. Rose opened her mouth to ask what was going on when she quickly shut it again. Edward was down on one knee. "Isabella Marie Swan, although I don't remember saying it, there's not one damn thing I said last night that was a lie. I wish this could have come out differently but I can't lie now and act like I didn't want this. So, will you please, please..."

"Yes, yes!" Bella interrupted, tears in her eyes as she knelt down in front of him and pulled him in for a kiss. He slid the ring onto her finger as Alice, Rose, Emmett, and Jasper congratulated them. Rose and Emmett hugged each other, Jasper patted him on the back before giving Bella a hug, and Alice...in typical Alice fashion, flung herself at her big brother. When their hug was over, he pulled Bella back to him.

It was an hour later and they were sitting around the dorm, talking and laughing. Edward and Bella called everyone they knew as the others talked. The kitten was not forgotten. He'd taken an extreme liking to Jasper and wouldn't let the blonde haired southerner out of his sight. The kitten was rather scrawny so Alice and her new love decided to go down and get him some milk and tuna from the dining hall. The kitten was thin, too thin, but had huge ears, huge paws, and a long tail. Bella had laughed when they'd all noticed it. He looked like a lemur.

Seeing the attachment the cat had formed to Jasper and the fact that Alice wouldn't let the poor thing out of her sight, Bella asked Edward if he would mind if they let Alice take care of it. Unlike Bella and Edward, Alice had her own apartment and was actually allowed to have pets—he hadn't considered that last night. He agreed with no hard feelings and broke the news to Alice when they came back.

She was ecstatic, hugging them both. Three days later, he received a call from her. "Edward...I...need..." she sobbed into the phone.

"Ally? What's wrong?" Edward was alarmed. God help the poor bastard who'd made his little sister cry.

"It's Jasper!"

Edward looked over at his roommate, who was standing about two feet away from him eating a sandwich. He knew this would happen. Shaking his head, he turned to his best friend. "What the fuck, man?"

"What?" Jasper asked, his mouth full of bread.

"Don't say 'what'. My sister...what did you do?"

"Edward, wait! Not that Jasper!" Alice was trying to get his attention on the phone.

"How many other Jasper's do you know, Alice?" Edward was surprised that there was more than one.

"The cat!"

"You named the cat Jasper?" Edward asked as if that was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. He also now had his roommate's full attention.

"Yeah..." she said shyly, "I really, really like Jasper...the human Jasper."

"Alright," he replied, ruling his eyes, "What's wrong with the damn cat, Al?"

"I'm allergic to him."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah but I can't keep him. He makes me sneeze and my eyes are all puffy. The doctor said I need to get rid of him."

"What am I supposed to call him? It's a little weird to have a cat named after my best friend, just sayin'. Not to mention that could get a bit confusing."

"Just refer to him as Jasper Cat. There. Problem solved."

Hanging up the phone, Edward shook his head and laughed. Jasper had finished his sandwich, watching him closely. He turned to his roommate and best friend before calling his parents. "Dude, I swear to God, if you hurt her I'll fucking kill you." Jasper just smiled, knowing full well Edward would keep that promise.

"When's the big day?"

"A few years. There's really no rush—we want to finish school first. Maybe before I start grad school. I've had that ring for months. It was my grandmothers."

It had been a strange day. That one day after that one strange night out with his roommate. They'd woken up completely disoriented and when all was said and done had acquired some interesting information. Edward now had a fiancé, Jasper now had a girlfriend, and Jasper Cat would be moving in with Edward and Bella when they decided to start their life together.

**Well, now you know. :)**

**Shout out to Cait!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Yay! 21 reviews! Thank you so much! I love it! Hope you enjoyed the slice of happiness in Chapter 9, you didn't really think it would only be about how they got their cat did you? Just to clear up a couple things brought to my attention. 1. Edward isn't an alcoholic and I'm sorry if the way I've written him has given you that impression...that's not my intention. 2. I am going to try to do a 'previously on' section because, as you've probably noticed, I like cliffies. :) So, here it is! Enjoy!**

**Thank you to my pretty much 'official' Beta—Cait you freaking rock!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: He had almost reached them when he heard Jacob respond to Bella telling him she was confused. One sentence. One sentence to make his heart stop. After all these years, Jacob had finally fucking said it. The first crack in his I-just-like-her-as-a-friend facade. "If you leave him, I'll leave Leah." _Holy. Fuck._**

**Chapter 10**

Bella stood up, backing away from him. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing would come out. Looking down at her best friend, she realized it was the first time she'd been speechless with him. Shaking her head, her mouth still open, she wanted to slap him right across the face. When she finally regained—at least slightly regained—her composure she grimaced and let him have it.

"I can't believe you just fucking said that! How do you go from planning to marry her to leaving her? How could you fucking say what you just did?"

Jake was standing now, too. "How do you go from_ being_ married to someone to wanting a divorce?"

"This is different Jake! Edward and I...we...I know we're not perfect..."

"You're not perfect. No one is. You don't have to be perfect! You just have to be happy and you aren't even that!"

"Leah loves you! How could you do this to her?" Bella cried. "You're _such_ a _hypocrite_! For years you've said shit to me about Edward and Tanya being friends and look at_ you_! If he wanted to leave me for Tanya he would've done it. The stupid whore throws herself at him every chance she gets!"

"Oh, like he doesn't enjoy it!"

"Fuck you, Jacob. You better hope to God I don't say anything to Leah about this! I'm not even saying anything to Edward...he's been telling me for years what you've been up to and every time, every fucking time I defended you! I can't believe how stupid I was!"

"You're still being stupid! You and him both! You're in denial! You both want to pretend this is normal...that this marriage isn't ending...you're lying to yourselves and each other. Your baby died. Get over it."

Bella looked at Jake. If she was speechless before she didn't even know what she was now. He was so hurtful. Angry didn't even come close. There were truly no words. So she didn't say anything, she stood there, not breathing. After what felt like a million years, she saw Edward standing between her and Jake. _When did he get here?_

"I'm taking her back to Charlie's. You will stay the fuck away from her. I heard everything you piece of shit. Come near her again and I will tell Leah. Are we clear?" Bella had never seen him so angry. He and Jake had never gotten along, they'd fought often, but she'd never seen Edward this way. He seemed like he was too angry to move as well. She'd expected fists to start flying—for the first time, she didn't care. She wanted to watch her husband beat the shit out of her best friend. Instead, to her disappointment, Edward touched the small of her back, guiding her down the stairs.

When they made it to Charlie's, Bella stormed upstairs. Edward didn't know what to do. He noticed she was shaking in the car. She wasn't crying—which was normal for her when she was hurting—this wasn't healthy. Wanting to keep and eye on her but let her have space at the same time, he sat at the top of the stairs, watching her carry things back and forth from the bathroom to the bedroom.

After five minutes of slamming and dragging, she came out of her room pulling a large suitcase behind her. "How could he have said that to me?"

Edward didn't know what to say. It didn't surprise him that Jacob told her he'd leave Leah. He was surprise that he'd said that about the baby. He never liked Jake but that had more to do with him wanting Bella. If it wasn't for that, he may have considered Jake a decent guy—probably a better guy than he was.

When he'd heard Jacob's little comment to Bella, he'd wanted to rip his face off but decided to stand in the shadows and see what Bella had to say. After the stripper incident—and not to mention Tanya—he wouldn't have been completely blind sided had she taken Jacob up on his offer. How fucked up was that? "I don't know, Bella. He's angry...people say stupid things...and do stupid things when they're angry."

"I have to get out of here. Can you drive?"

"Yeah, which vehicle..."

"The Volvo. I'll need it. You can come back for the Vanquish...I don't want to come back."

"You mean..."

"I want to go back to Seattle."

Every strip club they passed, Bella would raise an eyebrow and glance at him. The third time he'd caught her doing it, he sighed and said, "I'll show you which one when we go past it."

"We need to figure things out. Jake was right about one thing, this isn't normal."

"We have another two hours before Seattle."

"Edward, I think we need to make a decision here. When we do, we have to stick with it. We have to make promises and keep them."

"I agree."

"We also have to promise to be honest. No matter how much it hurts the other."

"Alright. Where do we start?"

"You go first, tell me something you feel needs to change. We can't keep talking about what happened, only what we can fix."

"Jacob. I want to start with Jacob. Bella, I don't want you to keep being pulled back and forth. Either you want me or you want him. If you honestly would have wanted that, you needed to tell me. After today, though, I guess you made your choice. Just please, don't go back to that again with him. Be honest with me. I know you two were close. I still needed to know you loved me more."

"Jake and I are over. If I talk to him it will be strictly about the reservation. I always loved you more. If I doubted that, I wouldn't have married you. I can't believe Jake would string Leah along like that. I think I've always known that he wanted more but he never acted on it..." she let her voice trailed off.

"Alright, your turn." Edward said, eyes on the road.

"Tanya. We're making a decision on this today. You are either going to make a promise and keep it or your not. It's going to be up to you. What are you going to do about her? Have you been sleeping with her?"

"No. I haven't slept with her. The only time I've had physical contact to that extent was with that stripper. That night that I yelled at you for the diaper bag, she tried to get me to sleep with her and I'm not going to lie, I probably would have done it. I was drunk—I know—it's not an excuse but I was upset and I made a mistake by going home with her. With the stripper, it was a handjob. I've never had intercourse with anyone other than you...well, since we were together."

"Okay. Now what, though?"

"I don't know, Bella. I know you don't want me to talk to her..."

"Ya think? Seriously, you need to tell her its over and mean it. You have to promise me you can do this."

"I don't know if..."

"Edward!"

"Bella, she's been friends with me since...forever! She doesn't really have anyone. Her parents cut her off, she has no money, that's why she's been all over me. She wants my money."

"That makes it okay?"

"No. Of course I'll tell her it's over but just not...over, over."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"That I'm not just never going to speak to her again."

"You lost that when you got drunk and went to her house at night by yourself. You have every right to kick her out of your life!"

"What if we don't agree?" Both of them were silent for a few moments. "We've gotten to that point haven't we? We both know we can't keep fighting anymore. It's toxic. We aren't going to work unless we can promise what the other wants?"

"Yeah...I guess," Bella responded quietly.

"What about the practical issues? What are you going to do about the reservation?"

"I'll call Billy tonight. Tell them they need to find a new teacher. I still want to help them hire if you are still thinking about donating."

"Of course I am. I'll put the money up. No problem. What about working in Seattle? It's obvious you love it and want to. If you don't, that's okay too. You don't have to. I would like for the house to stay the same. I want our kids to be able to have a lot of playing room." After a few seconds of no response from her, Edward looked at her questioningly.

"Alright, I need to be honest with you. Edward, I don't want...I don't want anymore kids."

"What?" he was certainly shocked by this. Having children was the one thing he'd always wanted. He and Bella had been talking about kids since they were engaged. He didn't know what to say.

"Yeah, I just can't. I'm not wavering on this."

"Bella, you can't just give up..."

"Yes, I can. I'm not changing my mind. That's a decision we need to make and I'm making it. No children."

Edwards whole world shifted. She wouldn't compromise on Tanya. She wouldn't compromise on having children. He didn't know what to say. "Bella...please."

"No. I'm sorry. If we stay together, we aren't having children. I won't go through that again."

"What if we adopt?"

"It's too much of a reminder..."

"I won't agree to this. This is insanity. You could change your mind at any point! I'm not promising that we won't have kids. It doesn't even make sense. Can't we wait to make this one decision?"

"You have to realize if we stay together, its not going to happen. Now, let's talk about our son's stuff. I think we need to donate it. Donate everything except his pictures."

"I'd like to keep his elephant blanket and the bear I got him...I mean we could donate everything else..."

"Edward, if you want those reminders of him, take them to your parents. I can't see them everyday..."

"You can't just pretend he never existed! How can you act this way? I could maybe, someday agree to no more children but getting rid of everything doesn't mean he was never here!"

"Seems like you aren't really willing to negotiate then, doesn't it?" She said it coldly, he couldn't believe she was doing this. This wasn't the person he'd married...not even a shell of the person he'd married.

"I'd be willing to never speak to Tanya, to never look at another girl for the rest of my life, but I can't be expected to forget I had a son," he argued, in utter shock.

There were tears rolling down her face as she looked at him, "Edward, I want a divorce."

He missed her, he missed Jasper Cat, he missed everything about the life they used to have—with or without their little boy. After Bella had dropped the d-bomb, neither had said a word until they were in front of their house. "Bella..." he'd tried to talk to her but she interrupted him.

"I have nothing to say. We need to figure out who's going to get the house...I'm guessing it'll be you...you paid for everything."

"Bella! Can we talk about this? What's wrong with you? Is this really want you want?"

"If you don't want me to stay here tonight...I can go somewhere else."

"No! I want you here every night! I don't want a divorce! I want you!"

"Look, I just want you to be happy. I can't believe I'm going to say this but maybe Tanya is your better option." _Had she completely lost her fucking mind? This isn't her. This isn't Bella. This is a total fucking nightmare._

"Bella!"

"Just think about it. She's cut out for this expensive life you're living! I know she wouldn't have any trouble having your children. In her own fucked up way, she loves you."

"And you don't?" he asked, devastated.

"I'll always love you. It's just not _enough_."

"We could get counseling. You really need to talk to someone about losing the baby. I have that ladies number from the night it happened. Please, talk to _someone_."

"Edward, I'm tired of thinking about it. I'm tired of it. It's taken up every aspect of my life since it happened. I can't do this anymore!"

"We could do this together! I'm begging you!"

She hadn't agreed, so he'd been trying for a week now to figure out what to do. He'd spent the first night home in the guest room, checking on her at least ten times that night. He had no idea how truly messed up she was over this. Instead of letting him in, letting them help each other, she was pushing him away from her. He was scared for her. What Jake had said really pushed her over the edge. He could kill him.

The next day, he called Alice and Rosalie, who agreed to speak to Bella. He also had his dad, Emmett, and Jasper drive down with him to get the Vanquish. He told them what was happening. At first, they didn't know what to say, then Carlisle spoke. "I'm wondering if she sees you as a reminder of the baby. She thinks she let you down."

"Nothing I say is good enough, dad. She won't even talk to me. Every time I try she just starts talking about a divorce."

Emmett spoke next, "Did you have a pre-nup?"

Edward hadn't even thought about that. He'd seen enough divorces to know that if she was serious about this, they were in for a long haul. He knew one thing, he wasn't signing damn the papers. She could take him to court. There was no way in hell he was just going to sign his wife away. Not when she needed help. "No."

"You are the dumbest fucking lawyer I know!" Emmett's voice boomed.

"Em!" Carlisle warned his oldest son.

"Bella isn't like that," Edward said, quietly, "if a divorce is really what happens, you best believe she'll still be taken care of for the rest of her life. Can we stop talking about this? She needs help."

The ride down hadn't gotten him anywhere. Carlisle said to keep talking to her. Emmett, being Emmett, suggested sex. Jasper had stayed pretty quiet, which is why his best friend was riding back in the Vanquish with him. Something was obviously bothering him. Edward felt like an ass for not talking to him in so long.

"What's up, man?"

"It's nothing. You have enough problems."

"So distract me. Tell me yours."

After rolling his eyes Jasper said, "Ally and I...we're having some problems. We've been trying, ya know, to get pregnant. It's not working."

Edward didn't know what to say. They hadn't planned on Bella getting pregnant when she had. He had no idea what it was to feel the frustration of trying. He_ could_ relate to wanting a child and being unable to convince his wife that. "Jazz, can I be honest with you?"

"Yeah."

"These things happen for a reason. When it's time, it'll work out."

"I know. It just sucks ass," he said with a humorless laugh, "what are you going to do about Bella?"

"I honestly don't know. I've never been this unsure of anything in my life."

On Wednesday, he'd moved into his parents—temporarily. He couldn't take seeing ghost Bella anymore. If he tried to talk to her, she'd get mad. If he didn't, she stayed silent. Alice, Rosalie, his mom, even his dad had tried to talk to her. She refused help. Between work and Bella, he really needed a break. Now, they were on their way to Emmett's birthday dinner. He had no idea if his wife would show up or not.

He drove his car, following his parents. Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper and Alice were all there...as well as someone he wouldn't have expected to see. Tanya was sitting beside Alice, who looked rather uncomfortable. His mom stopped in her tracks when she saw her. Esme had always been so calm and composed, always so nice and compassionate. She glared at Tanya like a mama bear protecting her cub. Alice seemed to notice her mothers dismay. She stood up and said, "Let her explain. Believe me, you'll want to hear this."

Edward and his parents sat down across from them, his mother folded her arms, as if saying 'let's hear it'. Tanya looked from him to his mom. Something wasn't right. For once, Tanya wasn't her usual bitchy self, she looked...concerned. Well, as concerned as Tanya could look.

"Alright, I know I shouldn't be here but I didn't just show up on my own. Edward, Bella called me and asked me to come have dinner with all of you tonight. Don't worry, I'm not staying, I just thought that maybe you should know...and that we should do this in public."

She turned to leave when Edward called out to her, "Hey! Is that really all she said? What? 'I'm just calling to invite you to dinner?'"

"No," Tanya looked away for a second, debating on what all to say. "She called to tell me the two of you are getting a divorce. She said something along the lines of he's all yours but don't be a bitch to him. I don't know, if you ask me, she's nuts. Either way, congrats on getting rid of her." There was the Tanya he knew.

When she was gone, Edward put his head in his hands and leaned on the table. Had that seriously just happened? "Look, Em, I'm sorry about all of this..."

"Don't worry about it, man. That was more entertaining than anything I could've planned. Buy me a shot later and we'll call it even."

The rest of dinner went without a hitch or the mention of Bella. He noticed his mom throwing strange looks his way every once in a while. He could tell she wanted to talk. He stood up and motioned for her to follow. Once outside he asked what she was thinking.

"I guess I'm just kind of...I don't know...angry. I lost my grandson and now I'm losing a daughter. I also don't trust Tanya. Why the hell would Bella just give in and hand you over now?"

"Mom, I don't know," Edward said, frustrated. "I do know one thing though, Bella _has_ gone a bit nuts. I'm really worried about her. I mean, yeah things are definitely on shaky, possible divorce grounds. I just can't understand why she is so willing to _not_ try. She was always stubborn as hell but for the past almost four months now, she was okay. I've really mess up. I should have gotten help. I should have been there for her. Not avoiding the situation. It was just that she didn't really want me around. I thought if I gave her space she'd be okay after awhile. Is it really too late?"

"Why don't you let me talk to her...one more time."

"Of course you can talk to her. I want you to talk to her. I'm just worried that you guys are going to take my side and think badly of her. This isn't her, though mom. Remember when we were married? This is the girl who had wanted to get pregnant on our honeymoon. When we bought that beast of a house, she wanted at least three bedrooms besides ours. Now, she told me last weekend that she doesn't want anymore children! She wanted me to promise her that I would accept never having another child if we stayed together. It's insanity! What if it was an accident? What if I went back with her and she got pregnant? Could I trust her not to hurt our baby?"

"Edward, can I ask you something? Be honest with me. Do you blame her for baby Edward's death?"

Edward was shocked she'd ask him that. He had to think about it. Really think about it. _Was it really her fault the baby died? No. The Bella he'd married wanted this little one. She'd always been clumsy...it was just a tragic accident. _"No, mom, I don't. I've never even thought about it until now."

"Maybe she thinks you do..."

"No. I've never even _implied_ that I thought it was her fault!"

"Maybe _she_ blames herself! Just let me talk to her. Let me try one more time. I love her. We all do. Your father and I will never just forget about her. She should at least know that."

"I hope you can help her. I can't. I've tried. Come on, we need to get back, we're neglecting poor Emmett on his birthday," Edward said with a smile.

His mother rolled her eyes, "He's a big boy, I'm sure he can survive without his mother for ten minutes."

When they walked back in, the first thing Emmett did was ask where they hell they'd been. Esme laughed, telling him to mind his own business and finish his dinner. Edward saw the waitress coming with drinks. She passed them out, setting down wine, mixed drinks, a couple beers, two sodas, and a water—in front of Alice.

"Come on, Al! Have a drink! This is a celebration!" Emmett proclaimed, lifting his Captain and Coke.

"Oh...um...I'll have something a little later," she said, smiling, turning a little red as she glanced quickly at Jasper.

Edward was looking at her when he heard Rosalie drop her fork and jump up exclaiming, OH MY GOD! Before running over and hugging Alice. By the time his mother joined them, he knew what was going on. Looking at Jasper, he shook his head, "I told you to just give it time."

Jasper smiled back, "We didn't want to tell anyone yet. We literally found out this morning. She's probably barely a week along. I guess we just don't want to get anyone's hopes up yet."

"Jazz, don't think about it that way. Ever. Don't take this for granted. Ever. One week or eight months, you just never know. You have no idea how happy I am for you both. Remember how I told you I'd kill you if you hurt her? Well that extends to my new niece of nephew."

Just like the first time he'd made the promise, Jasper just smiled—he wouldn't want it any other way.

Everyone, even his parents—who rarely drank anything other than wine, decided to go out for a few hours to a local bar. Things were going well, as well as they could go, until they were getting ready to leave. Alice wanted to get out of the cigarette smoke, Em was pulling Rose out the door—probably wanting his birthday sex, and his father had to be up early the next day for work. As they were all leaving, he'd just gotten back from doing his last shot with Emmett—the one he'd owed him, when Jasper pulled him aside.

"Edward, man, you're not going to believe this. She's here."

"Who's here?" he asked, praying it wasn't Tanya.

"Bella. I just watched as some guy, he was standing right by you and Em, bought her a drink and ask the waitress to deliver it." Jasper pointed her out. She was at a table by herself, sipping a drink as she locked gazes with some asshole at the bar. "Man, what are you going to do?"

"Did mom and dad leave yet?" His voice as icy as his veins.

"Yeah."

"Take Alice and go. I'll call you tomorrow."

**Uh-oh. He'd handled the Jake situation sooo well...wonder how this is going to go. Think Mama Esme can get through to her? Let me know what you think and don't forget to tune in next time! **

**LP xo**


	11. Chapter 11

**It is now after 12 am on a Saturday night, my fiance has gone to bed without me, and I've been working on this for at least six hours. Did I tell you lovelies lately that you completely freaking own me? No worries...I kinda like it ;) The end is going to make some of you very happy...or really angry...I guess you'll just have to review and let me know! PS I'm loving all the reviews I've been getting! Love you guys! Thank you to my pretty much 'official' Beta—Cait you freaking rock!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

Previously on Waiting for the End: "Bella. I just watched as some guy, he was standing right by you and Em, bought her a drink and ask the waitress to deliver it," Jasper said pointing her out. She was at a table by herself, sipping a drink as she locked gazes with some asshole at the bar. "Man, what are you going to do?"

**Chapter 11**

"Ally! Hey!" Jasper called, running up behind her in the parking lot. Turning around, Alice smiled at him before telling Rosalie goodbye and meeting him in the middle. He motioned to Emmett to wait. "Baby, why don't you see if Em and Rose can give you a ride? I...ugh...Edward wanted to talk to me about something and it's been so long since I've gotten to hang with him. I should be home in like an hour or so."

"Yeah, okay. Jazz, is everything okay, you seem...like your lying." Alice said, a concerned look on her face.

"Alright, so maybe I am lying but can you trust me? I swear I'll be home shortly...and I won't do anything illegal," he said, only half joking.

"Alright. Call me if you need me to come get you...or Edward," she smirked, as if she'd guessed it was something to do with her brother.

After she left, he walked back into the bar. He felt like a dick for trying to lie to Alice but he knew Edward wouldn't want her to know what he suspected was going to happen. Edward didn't need an audience, or a guilt trip from his little sister. Edward needed...well, he didn't know what Edward needed. He needed Bella, that was for sure. Otherwise, God only knows what type of depression he'd slip into. He loved her. Jasper knew that better than anyone.

In college, he would listen to Edward go on and on about her. He'd listen to Edward talk about what her favorite fucking colors were, when she was going to be able to visit, where he was taking her for their dates, what happened after their dates—which he totally could have gone without knowing. He'd listen to Edward complain about living so far from her and about Jacob Black. He'd listen to Edward when wedding planning was making his head spin, when Edward talked about how nervous he was to become a father—hell, he'd watch the grown man cry when they put the little ones crib together.

Jasper knew Edward better than anyone. He wasn't always as open with his family—even Emmett. After college, he'd stayed in Seattle instead of moving back home, claiming it was because of Ally. He knew better though, he definitely couldn't leave Alice but also couldn't leave the one guy who'd always been there for him. He also knew that Edward had made some really, really fucked up decisions. He'd like to rip him apart for all he'd done...but who was he to judge him? How could he possibly know what the man was going through?

Now, he looked around nervously, Bella was now talking to the stranger and Edward wasn't interrupting. He found him a few moments later by himself at a small table—watching his wife flirt with this other man. This wasn't like Edward at all. Walking over, he put his hand on his best friend's shoulder, "Edward, hey, let's go home."

Edward looked up. His face contorted and he was clenching his jaw, as if fighting back tears. "She's fucking beautiful, Jazz. I mean, fuck, look at her. She's so beautiful. You know, I can't even blame the bastard whose now probably trying to get her number."

"Alright, alright, come on. Do you want to go...I don't know...try to talk to her? You_ are_ still her husband."

"I cheated on her, Jazz. Got a hand job from a stripper. I deserve this. I deserve all of this." Jasper hadn't seen that one coming. _He'd cheated on her? This was the guy who would turn down five girls a night when they went out in college. The guy who wouldn't even take their numbers. _

It was clear Edward wasn't going to talk to her...he was too damn mopey. "We're going. How much did you have to drink?"

"A glass of wine at dinner and a shot of Wild Turkey," Edward answered flatly.

_Damn, he was sober and this much of a mess? _"Come on. Stay with Ally and me tonight. We can watch a movie and try to relax a little."

"Yeah, alright. I just have to piss first," he said walking away.

Jasper knew he didn't have much time. As he approached Bella, the strange man turned and looked at him questioningly. He ignored him, walking right up to her. Her eyes widened when she saw him. "He saw it. Just thought you should know. You should also know whatever you're doing, it's working."

Bella reached out and grabbed his arm as he tried to leave. "He needs to get over me, Jazz."

Jasper froze. Way to curious to figure out what the hell she thinking to worry about Edward walking out of the bathroom—which is what Edward must have been doing because Bella's eyes got even wider. Seconds later, Jasper heard him ask, "Bella, what the hell are you doing?"

She straightened her shoulders, taking a deep breath before saying, "I'm just trying to have some fun. It's been awhile since I've been out."

"You could have come out for your brother-in-laws birthday," Edward said, obviously pissed.

"Isabella, do you want me to go..." the stranger asked, looking back and forth between the two guys and Bella.

Edward looked over at him, finally breaking his glare at Bella, "She's married, asshole. To me."

"I'm getting a divorce," Bella said, her voice a little louder than necessary.

Jasper watched as Edward shook his head in a I-can't-believe-this-bullshit sort of way. Bella tucked her hair behind her ear with her left hand, giving him and Edward both a glimpse of her bare ring finger. "Really, Bella? Where is it? That was my grandmothers."

It took Bella a moment, as if she couldn't figure out what he was asking, before looking down at her hand. Jasper watched as the strange man walked away. "It's on the night stand."

"How can you do this so damn easily? How can you just forget all the years we've been together? Everything we've been through. Tell me. Tell me how to do it because I fucking can't." Jasper didn't know what to do, he just stood there awkwardly as Bella stayed silent. Finally, Edward gave up and turned to him, "Jazz, I'm ready to go."

Bella woke up the next morning and saw that it was almost eleven on Sunday. Less than five months ago, she'd be sitting with her husband at their kitchen table eating brunch before jumping in the shower...together...to get ready to go for Sunday lunch. Walking downstairs to her empty kitchen, she felt the knife in her side twist even further. She missed him so much, she could see him leaning against the kitchen counter, shirtless. His baggy pajama bottoms hanging low on his hips. The little patch of hair that led down to...

She forced herself to walk out of the kitchen and back upstairs. Everything in the house was a reminder of him and their son. She thought about what Jake had said to her the last time she was in Forks. _"Your baby died. Get over it."_ She couldn't get over it. Everyone wanted her to get over it. Edward was ready to have another baby. He wanted her to have his baby. How could she possibly let that happen again? Jake didn't understand. _I killed his child. I killed our baby._

She was finally going to be able to give her husband something valuable, to give him the one thing he wanted more than anything. She was going to be able to carry his little boy. She could imagine what Edward Jr would have looked like. That coppery red hair sticking out everywhere as he skated around the local ice rink. His first hockey game. His first baseball game. His first lost tooth. His first fight at school because Uncle Em taught him how to fight. His first date where he'd open the car door for the lucky girl because Uncle Jazz told him to treat her with respect. His first argument with his parents where he'd win and make his daddy proud because he could only have learned those debating skills from his lawyer father.

That was all gone now. She could not take those experiences away from Edward again. She knew from his reaction in the car, when she told him she didn't want kids, that he would never give up on that dream. How could she deny him that? How could she take that away from him when half the women in the world would drop their panties in thirty seconds if it meant having Edward Cullen's baby. She had to let him go.

She found herself rocking back and forth on the cream colored glider. She couldn't remember going into the nursery, now that she was there she vowed to clean this room out. She could give everything to Emily and Sam. Wondering how she'd get it down there in the Volvo, she heard the doorbell. Finding her way to the front door, she saw Esme looking back at her. Bella loved Esme. While her own mother, Renee, was a little flighty, Esme was always the mom she turned to. She wanted to fling the door open, jump into Esme's arms, and cry.

Instead, she walked over and pulled it open. "Hi."

"Hi, Bells. Mind if I come in?"

Bella shook her head and motioned Esme in and towards the couch. They sat there in silence. Bella because if she spoke she'd end up crying and Esme because she was afraid she'd make Bella shut down on her. Finally, Esme spoke, "Carlisle and I...we wanted you to know...sweetie, we love you so, so much."

That's all it took, Bella burst into tears. Before she knew it, she was in Esme's arms—and Esme was crying too. "Oh, Bella, baby, come back to us."

"I can't. Esme, I'm sorry. I really can't," Bella choked out in between sobs, pulling away from her. "I killed his baby!" Bella hadn't realized she'd practically screamed it until she saw Esme's shocked face. "It's true! He died because of me! Edward's son died because I killed him, Esme!"

"Bella that's not true," Esme said firmly, "I was there. Remember that night? I was there. I saw how scared you were! It was an accident Bella! You were so distressed you passed out! I was there!"

Bella just stood there, shaking her head, tears rolling down her cheeks, "I love you. I love him. I love everyone in this family. Please understand that I can't do this to any of you anymore. I am going through with this divorce. You have to help him. He deserves to find someone who can give him what he wants."

"Bella, all he wants is you! He's a guy! Sure, he makes stupid mistakes. He talks to girls he shouldn't. He says things he shouldn't. He stays out later than he says he will! He loves you unconditionally! He acts out when he thinks your going to leave him! If you haven't noticed he's a little anxious about that!"

"I'm sorry. Esme, I'm sorry."

"Would you consider counseling, Bells? Just consider it?"

"Bella just stood there not knowing what to do. She'd been staring at the damn counselors card on her dresser for the past four and a half months. How could she sit in front of another person, a stranger, and admit that she killed a defenseless baby? She knew it's what everyone had tried to get her to do. Hell, the first week at Forks, Jake set her up on a lunch date with a psychologist friend of his. She never did show up.

Instead of answering her mother-in-law, she told her she'd be back and headed upstairs. Returning a few minutes later, she handed Esme's mother's ring back to her. "I need you to give this back to him."

"Bella, don't do this. Don't do this to him. Don't do this to us."

"Esme, please go."

Over the next few months, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion, yet time was racing by. Edward watched as Rosalie and Emmett counted down to the final days before the wedding. He watched Jasper and Alice prepare for baby Whitlock. He watched his father and mother redo three rooms of their already beautiful home. He'd bought his own small penthouse, a fortune that he could afford, but still stayed at his parents most of the time. He watched Esme's face fall when he'd told her the divorce papers had come. He watched Rosalie's frustration when she'd had to replan the wedding party. He watched Alice's disappointment when Bella didn't show up to the baby shower.

Everyone's life was moving so quickly but his was at a total stand still. He poured himself into work. Took on more clients than anyone else at the office. A month after moving Bella back to Seattle he had called Mr. Black and set up the money transfer. Jacob himself had tried to call him a few times. He wouldn't talk to him.

Rosalie's wedding had gone off without a hitch. Alice was the Maid of Honor. Jazz was the Best Man. He was paired up with Carmen Denali, Tanya's older sister. Tanya, to his relief, was not in the wedding party. Bella should have been. She wasn't, though. She sat in the back of the church by herself and shown up to the reception with her friend Emily, who must have been exhausted for how pregnant the poor girl looked. Emily and Alice had hit it off well. Bella just looked depressed.

When it came time for Jasper to give his speech, Edward watched from his seat, nervous because Emmett had asked him to speak too. Jasper's speech was the typical love each other, be happy type of shit. Edward realized he couldn't do this. He couldn't stand up and pretend that love was all that you needed. When everyone turned to him, he slowly pulled himself up and swallowed hard before opening his mouth.

"When Em and I were little, Ally used to plan our weddings for us. We were ten and seven years old but we knew what colors we'd be wearing, what vows we'd be saying, and what music we'd be dancing to. She was always very thorough...and God forbid Mr. Potato Head show up late for the reception...he totally wasn't allowed any cake—which was red velvet for me and carrot for Em. As we got older, her dream got to come true. The only difference was, she was never able to tell us who we'd be waiting for to come down that aisle.

If we'd had to choose back then, I'm pretty sure Emmett would have chosen Mariah Carey or Madonna. We won't even talk about who I'd choose, I was still watching Sesame Street. One thing we knew for sure was that she would have to be pretty damn amazing," he paused, raising his glass toward Emmett, "You've found her, Em. Never forget that. Never forget that you never settled for anything less than pretty damn amazing. I love you guys."

After the toasting and the eating, Edward snuck outside to get away from all the guests. He loved his family and friends but most had no idea he and Bella were...separated. He considered it separated. They were living in separate homes, living separate lives, hell...she'd been dating separate people. Tanya was all but stalking him now. He thought of confronting her about it but didn't see what the point was. At least it made him feel like someone gave a shit.

The bachelor party had been fun. With Ally pregnant, Rosalie pretty much decided a spa weekend getaway was in order for the girls. That left the boys with three days of no supervision. What did they do? They painted baby Whitlock's bedroom, got fitted for tuxes, went through about a thirty pack of beer every night, and played at least a hundred and fifty games of poker. It was just like old times, the three of them sitting around in Emmett's basement just simply being guys.

No one mentioned Bella. He suspected they wanted to but the more they thought about her the more difficult it was to understand she wasn't going to come back to them. He'd tried to talk to her numerous times. The first had been when Jacob left a voicemail on his phone saying that Quil Attera was killed in a drunk driving accident—Quil was the drunk driver. The second had been when Rosalie was planning her wedding shower and bachelorette weekend. The third had been for Alice's baby shower. The other hundred times were just him, hoping she'd pick up, but she never did.

When he'd go out with Emmett and Jasper, they'd sometimes run into her. If she wasn't out with her friend Angela, she was usually out with a guy. It was like someone taking a steel toed boot and kicking him in the stomach as hard as they could. He missed her so much that he'd gone to the extent of showing up at their house. He'd knocked on the door for an hour straight before realizing she wasn't going to answer. He had a key. He wouldn't let himself in, though. It didn't feel right.

The very last time he'd made the attempt to call her was when he had gotten the divorce papers. Keeping his promise to himself he hadn't signed the paper. He wanted to call to tell her so. She didn't answer, which didn't surprise him, but he'd left a voicemail.

"I'm not signing, Bells. I do want you to know that the house is yours. I'll have the deed written up solely in your name. Our joint account is still open. If you need money, take it. I also talked to Billy. He said you've hired a few teachers. I guess that's it. If you need me call me. I'm waiting to hear from you. Love you, Bells. Please call."

Standing at the front of the reception hall, trying to calm himself down, he was as shocked as hell when his wife approached him. "Hey."

"Oh, hey," he said, surprised.

"You're really not going to sign are you?"

"No. I can't do it. Bella, why haven't you returned my calls?" he asked, avoiding the topic she obviously wanted to discuss.

"Edward, come on. You know I don't have the money to take you to court. I can't afford a lawyer," she laughed humorlessly at the irony of the situation. She couldn't afford to divorce her millionare lawyer husband because she couldn't _afford_ a _lawyer._

"First, you do have the money. Second, you could just save yourself the money...save_ me_ the money...if you'd just call off this whole thing. Bella, please, just consider..."

"Edward! Hey, Em's looking for you!" Carmen called out from the entrance and walked over to them. "Your sister also wants to know if you can drive her home after the wedding—Jazz is a little tipsy."

"Yeah, tell her that's fine and let Em know I'll be in soon." When she was gone he turned to Bella, "So, will you at least consider it?"

"Edward, we're eating cake! Move it!" Emmett yelled from behind them.

"You better get back in there. Goodbye, Edward."

"Bella, wait! Hey!" But she was already gone, headed back into the party.

After cake and the garter and bouquet toss, which Tyler and Carmen caught, Tanya sauntered up and hugged him. "Looking good, Cullen. My sister was a lucky girl today."

"Thanks, Tanya. You look good, too. Who are you here with?"

"I'm not. Edward, I heard about everything with you and Bella. I thought maybe you'd like someone to spend time tonight with..."

"Tanya, no. I can't. Bella's here."

"And? Edward, Carmen said that Rosalie said that you said Bella's been out with a lot of guys lately. She's obviously moved on. You need to do the same!"

"Tanya...not tonight. Don't do this right now. It's Emmett's wedding..."

"Yeah. It's your big brother's wedding and you standing here moping, completely sober, completely by yourself. I mean, look at you, your damn sexy Cullen...there's no reason for you to be alone right now. Come on, one dance? Pretty please?"

With a sigh, he gave in, "Fine. One dance."

One dance turned into two dances and two turned to three. He played bouncer for the bridal dance, making sure people could get through the big circle of people to Rosalie. When Emmett came to steal his bride, he and Jasper made him fight for a good five minutes before letting him take his wife. He was actually starting to enjoy himself. He'd had a few drinks but wanted to keep an eye on Ally...Jasper was currently dancing on a table with Edward's Aunt Elizabeth.

When the party came to a close, Emmett and Rosalie headed off to the limo. Esme, Elizabeth, Carlisle, Carmen, Tanya, and Tyler stayed to clean up. Edward helped get his sixth month pregnant sister into her car before carrying Jazz and laying him on the back seat. It had turned out to be a great night..until he'd pulled out of the parking lot and saw Bella getting into a vehicle with Emily, Sam, and Jacob Black. Leah wasn't there.

**Back to the Present (On the way to the hospital with Tanya driving)**

That had been the last time he'd been in contact with her. It was the last time he'd seen her. It was the last time since he'd walked into that bar tonight and seen her all over the tanned asshole. With his car still at the bar, about a half hour in the opposite direction of the hospital, and his current state of mind—freaking the fuck out, he'd practically thrown Tanya into the drivers side of her car. He could get a ride from someone later. _Why was she driving so damn slowly?_

Edward threw open the double doors leading to the floor Jasper had said Bella was on. The sight he saw as he reached the hallway right outside of her room was enough to make his heart stop. His mother, Esme, sat on an uncomfortable looking bench with her head tilted back against the wall as if trying to decide whether to pray or fall asleep. A heavily pregnant Alice was sitting on the floor between her husbands legs, leaning against him as he leaned against the wall. Emmett stood beside their mother, one hand on her shoulder, the other in a tight fist. Rosalie was pacing back and forth, looking like she wanted to rip someone apart. The only person missing was Dr. Carlisle Cullen, Edward instinctively knew, Bella's doctor.

Before he could choke out a word, every single one of them had turned to face him. Rosalie had quit pacing and instead was headed straight towards him. "Where the hell have you been?" she half whispered, half hissed at him.

Ignoring her question, Edward was more concerned for Bella. Holding his ground he asked as calmly as possible, "Is she going to be okay? What happened?"

With a huff, she turned on her heels and walked away from him as if he wasn't good enough for her to be around. Walking closer to them, he watched Emmett help their mother up. She approached him with a sad look and pulled him in for a hug. She immediately began to sob and Edward found himself fighting back tears of his own. "Mom, please, tell me she's alright. Please."

Unable to stop crying, Esme just stood there, holding onto him for dear life. "Edward, come on, we need to talk," he looked up when he heard his father's voice. Kissing his mother on the forehead he let go of her and followed his father silently into a small room off of the hallway.

As soon as they were away from the others, Edward asked, "Dad, tell me what's going on! Is she alright?"

"She'll be okay, she's been through a really rough night, though. Why don't you sit down?" he asked, motioning towards a small vinyl chair.

**We have arrived ladies and gentleman—I'm sure there's someone of the male variety at least reading a part of this! I don't know about you...but I'm pretty freaking excited to finally know what the hell happened to her! Let me know just how excited you are, don't forget to review! Until next time, LP xo**


	12. Chapter 12

**I know, I know, it's a day late. Yesterday was a cry-on-the-way-home-because-things-went-so-terribly-all-day type of day :( So I won't keep you with a super long A/N. Do know that this chapter deals with violence towards women. Don't read if this bothers you. **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat though. Literally, I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End:"She'll be okay, she's been through a really rough night, though. Why don't you sit down?" he asked, motioning towards a small vinyl chair. **

**Chapter 12**

Once they were both seated and facing each other, Carlisle began, "I was on my way home from here when your mother called me. She said I needed to come home immediately that Bella was hurt. She wouldn't tell me what was up over the phone. When I got home, they were the only ones there and she was holding Bella on the couch. I could hear Bell's sobbing and Esme was handing her tissue after tissue. When I approached her, she wouldn't look at me, like she was embarrassed. I went around to the other side of her and saw that the whole right side of her face was bruised."

"_Bella, what happened?" Carlisle exclaimed, immediately protective of the girl who he'd come to know as his daughter. She still wouldn't make eye contact with him and began to sob harder, clinging to Esme. "Please, tell me what happened."_

_After about five minutes, she finally looked at Carlisle and said through her sobs, "He did this. He did this," over and over._

_Carlisle's first thought had been Edward. It was no secret to the whole family that Bella and Edward's marriage was quickly coming apart but as he thought about it, he become upset with himself. There was no way Edward would hurt her—at least not physically, anyway._

"_Who did, Bells?" he asked quietly, the sobbing had stopped and she was sitting up on her own._

_Looking down at her lap, she played absently with her fingers and Carlisle realized she wasn't wearing her wedding rings. "Mike Newton, he umm...we were...out. Together." Esme and Carlisle both exchanged a look of disappointment._

"_Did Mike do this?" Carlisle asked, pointing to her face. Nodding her head, Bella took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around herself. "Sweetie, is that the only thing he did to you?"_

_Biting her lip, Bella peeled back the collar of her shirt to reveal bruises all over her chest and collar bone. Then she lifted her shirt enough to show him her ribs, which were all black and blue. Carlisle feared there was more to the story. So he asked, "Is this it, Bells? You need to tell me."_

_Shaking her head, Bella started crying again, "He forced me...God I didn't want to...I tried to fight..." that's when Carlisle realized what she was trying to say._

"_Alright, listen, I'm taking you to the hospital. Right now. We have to get you checked out..."_

"_You can't let my dad find out!" Bella blurted out._

"_We won't tell him, for now at least. Let's go," Carlisle said firmly._

"_I'm calling Edward!" Esme said, standing up and grabbing her cell phone._

"I got her here and checked into a room. The police are in there with her now. She has a few bruised ribs but none are broken, thank God. She's adamant on keeping this from Charlie but if they can't find Mike, they'll have a warrant out and I'm sure he's going to hear about it at the police station."

Edward was too angry to be in shock. The idea that someone would hurt Bella that way made him want to murder someone. He'd known Mike all through high school, the guy had dated Alice for a few weeks. Mike was now about two hundred pounds and lifted weights at the same gym Edward belonged to. Bella was about a hundred and ten pounds and could barely lift a fucking car battery. It wouldn't have taken much for the guy to hold her down and do what he wanted...so why the fuck was she covered in bruises?

"I'm guessing the fucker didn't just beat her, did he?" Edward spat, trying to remember it wasn't his father he was angry with.

Carlisle looked away as he played anxiously with his wedding band, something Edward knew his father did when he was anxious. "Edward, she doesn't remember because she thinks she blacked out. She can't remember anything. She says she was in so much pain. The only thing I can figure is that's why she was beaten so badly. The sick bastard wanted it to play out this way—probably thinking she wouldn't remember what happened at all. That he could get away with it."

"What time did she come in? I mean, it's already after one o'clock," he wasn't sure what proper protocol was for this but Bella hated hospitals. They terrified her. He could remember their discussion when they decided to get pregnant. She had tried to talk him into a home birth. He had talked her out of it by reminding her of all the wonderful drugs they can give in a hospital for pain...she sided with him.

"Well, they wanted to treat the injuries she had and take x-rays. She was also unconscious for a while. They won't let me be her primary doctor because of our relation to each other."

"I don't fucking get it. Why her? Is this the first time he's done something like this..."

He didn't have the time to finish his sentence because an ear splitting scream sounded from down the hall. It was Bella. It also wasn't just an incoherent scream, she was screaming for...him? Edward jumped from his chair and darted out into the hallway. The door was shut to her room and the family was gathered around nervously. Rosalie was fighting with one of the hospital workers right outside the door...now Emmett was yelling right along with her.

Ignoring them both, Edward grabbed the door knob and threw the door open. Bella was clenching the sheets, trying to fight off the woman in scrubs currently trying to do something under them. He recognized the woman as the one who took care of Bella the night she lost the baby...it was his father's friend...he highly doubted she was trying to hurt his wife. Running over to her, he could hear the hospital worker outside trying to get his attention, he grabbed Bella's face and forced her to look at him.

The doctor had obviously given up her struggle and was now standing there trying to figure out who the hell he was. When it donned on her she breathed a sigh of relief. "Mr. Cullen, all I was trying to do was a rape kit. I'm going to talk to one of the counselors here. She's obviously having some post traumatic issues. I'll give you a few minutes with her."

To his surprise, Bella had quit thrashing around and was clinging tightly to him. This was the most contact they'd had in almost a year. He grabbed her by the waist, careful not to touch her ribs, and pulled himself up so he was lying beside her. The door to the room was shut now. They had complete privacy which was good, he figured he'd probably not be allowed on the bed with her otherwise.

"Edward, I'm sorry! Oh, God, I...Mike...he...and I..."

"Shhh...I'm right here. No one's going to hurt you." He wanted to promise he wouldn't go anywhere, that no one would hurt her again, but if she still wanted the divorce how could he possibly promise that? As confused as he was as to why she was now needing him and not a year ago, he still held onto her for dear life. He realized this is what it should have been from the moment he'd found out about the baby. He should have kept hold of her. Even when Jacob had shown up. He never should have let her go.

He continued to hold her as she sobbed for what seemed like hours, although it was only about ten minutes. There was a small knock on the door as one of the hospital counselors poked her head in. Edward remembered her from the last time they were here. The card was on his dresser. "Do you need a few more minutes?" she asked with understanding.

Edward looked down at Bella, who was still in his arms, and back up at the lady. He forced the scared I-don't-know-what-the-hell-to-do look off of his face and tried to replace it with one a little less pathetic. He truly didn't know what the hell to do. She was really vulnerable right now. Was this really what she wanted? They had barely spoken in months. Now, she was clinging to him as if he was the last piece of floating wood in the water after the Titanic went down. He'd like to say he was doing this solely for her, that he wanted her to feel comfortable. It wasn't totally true. He had wanted to hold her for almost a year, just like this, both of them coming to terms with the loss of a child.

The lady walked in, obviously sensing that leaving them on their own wasn't the best idea. _Wow I must look fucking terrified._ "Mr. Cullen? Edward? Can I call you Edward?" Edward nodded his head, too torn up inside to speak. "She needs you. I know you're angry and you're scared and you're probably pretty hurt. You need her. Even though she's scared, hurt and probably angry." _Damn, this wom__an was good._

"I know this isn't exactly protocol but your father, he's a friend a mine, has spoken to me about your situation. I've already been told that the two of you are working on a divorce. Can I say something though? Off the books?" Edward nodded again. He was sitting up now, Bella had her arms around his waist and her head on his stomach. She had calmed down a little and was looking at the woman curiously.

"The two of you...and forgive me if I overstep my bounds...don't look like two people ready to let the other go. I've seen a lot of things, Edward. I've seen women in here, in this exact room, who were in the same situation as Bella. Do you want to know the difference? It wasn't a strange man that did it to them. It was their own husbands. I know you know she was out with another man tonight. A lesser man would come in here screaming at her, blaming her for her infidelity...or even not bothering to show at all.

"I know you're hurting. Look at her, though. You might not know this but she wouldn't let your father touch her to help her into this bed. That's why we brought the female doctor in. She wouldn't even talk to your brother. You are the one she wants."

"And Bella," she continued, addressing his wife for the first time, "You need to realize how much you would be hurting right now if he wasn't here. If you need him now, that's understandable, you've been through something very traumatic. You can't just let him in when you find it convenient. It's obvious he wants to be here for you. If he didn't, he wouldn't be here."

To his surprise, he felt her body relax—slightly—against him. "See, you don't need some hospital staffer in here to calm you, you've got this husband of yours...who's rather easy on the eyes might I add," she winked at Bella conspiratorially, which to his relief, made her smile—slightly. "So, here's the deal. I want them to think I've done something difficult to earn my keep here" she winked again, "so, here's my card...again.

"If you call that number and set up an appointment it doesn't guarantee that you'll be in a happy, problem free marriage until death do you part. I can see that the two of you are obviously a great comfort for each other. You don't have to talk to me. Neither of you do. Just talk to each other. I'll mediate. You don't need me to be there for you...you need each other. Alright, enough with the lecture. Here's the card. Call me. Bella, they want to do a rape kit. They need to do this to help put the man who did this to you away. I'm going to tell them that Edward stays. No matter what, he's allowed to stay. Can you do this for us, hon?"

Bella nodded her head with a small smile. Edward could feel his body start to relax. _This woman deserved a fucking raise. _"I'll talk to you two soon and I'll check on you before I leave. I think they might allow you to go home though so if you aren't here, I'll give you a call. Bye, guys."

"Hey...um...I'm sorry, I didn't get your name..."

"Dr. Lutz, but you guys can call me Kathy."

"Thank you," he said, gravel in his voice. There was so much more he wanted to say. He wanted to thank her for giving him hope again. He wanted to thank her for calming Bella. He wanted to thank her for saying something other than 'you need counseling, it'll fix everything'. He wanted to jump up and hug her—in a total non-cheating sorta way—but at the moment he didn't want to let go of Bella.

_This isn't fair to him. He shou__ldn't have to sit here like this. The woman was right, most husbands wouldn't be as forgiving. _She didn't care how selfish she was being. She couldn't let him go. She wouldn't let him go. If he wanted to leave, she wouldn't stop him but if he was fine to stay there, even if for the moment, she was fine with that.

She could feel his hard abs under his shirt, his strong arms wrapped around her, she was breathing in his scent...she hadn't felt this safe in almost a year. There was no way she could explain how sorry she was. No words could make this better...

"Mrs. Cullen?" The same doctor that had tried to do the rape kit on her before was back. She shivered and tightened her arms around her husband. He hugged her back and kissed her forehead.

"You've gotta let her, Bells," Edward said, slowly standing up and taking both her hands. Kathy was true to her word. They didn't make Edward leave. When it was over, she let out a sigh of relief. She didn't cry. That was the one thing she had sworn to herself she wouldn't do.

"Alright, Isabella, you're set to go home. You're probably going to be in a bit of pain for awhile. We'll get you some pain medication to take with you. I don't think it's the best idea for you to be driving right now and if you plan to do so in the near future, wait and see how you handle the meds," she glanced briefly at Edward before looking at Bella. "Isabella, if you need me to help arrange a ride for you..."

"That won't be necessary. I'll be taking her," Edward said with absolute certainty.

Bella was shocked, she knew he was here because he felt sorry for her but he didn't need to be her personal caregiver now. There was no way she could accept his offer. "Edward...no...really. I'll see if..."

"If what? Who's going to come get you, Bella? One of my family members? Seriously, just let me take you."

The doctor seemed flustered now. She wasn't used to Edward. Bella had almost forgotten that people could be intimidated by him. The woman obviously knew his family. She knew he was wealthy. He had a seriously intense look on his face and he was practically glaring at Bella. Bella knew that was just Edward. He fought for what he wanted and most of the time he got it. The look wasn't because he was angry with her. It was because he wanted to make sure she was okay.

"Edward, look before you agree to take me home..."

"I'll take her," Bella looked away from Edward, completely stunned. Jacob Black was standing in the doorway, a small overnight bag over his arm.

Bella looked back to Edward. If he was intimidating before, he looked absolutely lethal now. "Jacob, I've got her."

"Bella," Jacob began, completely ignoring her husband, "I brought you clothes from the house. Jasper Cat was on the porch when I got there, I put him in the basement. I packed a couple bags up. Let me know when you're ready to leave. If you're up for it, you can get anything else from the house before we leave."

"You're leaving," Edward asked, breathlessly.

"Jake, does Charlie know? How am I going to keep this from him?" asked Bella.

"I didn't tell him and he didn't call me so I'm assuming he doesn't know. Just stay down on the reservation..."

"Wait, Bella, you're leaving?" Edward asked again, "With him?"

"Edward, just go. Sorry we had to bother you last night. You've put enough effort into your marriage for the day...I'd hate to tie you up," Jacob spat at him.

"I'm not going anywhere," Edward spat back.

Bella felt bad for the poor doctor who was not looking back and forth between the two guys. After telling Bella to hit the call button when she was ready to go, she walked out. Finally, Bella managed to speak up to get their attention. "Jacob, I appreciate that you brought me the clothes but I won't need the other things you packed. I'm not going back to Forks right now."

"You sure as hell can't go back to that house! Where are you going to stay?"

"I'll figure something out."

"What the hell's wrong with our house?" Edward asked, growing more and more frustrated.

"Jacob, really, I appreciate it but I'll be fine. I'm sorry you drove the whole way here. I know it's Leah's birthday...go spend time with her."

"Are you sure that's what you want? Bella, you shouldn't be by yourself right now."

"I promise you. This is what I want. Give me a call when you get back so I can wish Leah a happy birthday."

Jacob stood there looking defeated before approaching her and kissing her on the cheek. She flinched and wouldn't let him hug her. "I'm sorry...I just...I just can't."

"No, I understand," Jacob said, disappointed, "I'll call you later. I'll drop the suitcases back off at the house. If you need anything at all, you call me. Understood?"

"Thanks, Jake," she said with a small smile. He returned the smile and walked back out, not even looking at Edward.

"I didn't call him," Bella said quietly.

"Bella, what the hell's going on? Why can't you go back home?" Edward was doing his glaring thing again.

"That's where it happened..." Bella whispered, trying to figure out how to explain how truly bad the house looked. She'd put up a struggle. A big one.

"Oh, alright, listen, you can stay with me tonight. I can go over there and get you clothes tomorrow and we'll figure out..."

"Edward, really, you don't have to stay with me. Don't feel guilty about this."

"Guilty?" Now he was angry. "Dammit, Bella, you think I'm feeling guilty? Do you think that's why I'm here? I'll tell you why I'm here! I've been waiting for a fucking year to be here for you! Forgive me for being so damned concerned about you!"

Bella had gotten through this whole hospital ordeal without crying...until now. She knew he would never hurt her but all she could think about was Mike...what he'd done... she had to keep reminding herself that Edward would never do that. She trusted him.

Edward didn't know what to do. He'd just watched as she flinched away from him, pulling the covers up, as if to protect herself. He had never, ever hit her. Ever. The idea that she thought he was going to made him sick. He knelt down beside the bed, careful not to touch her. "Bella, angel, I'm sorry. I'm just really upset that this happened to you. I'm angry. I didn't mean to take it out on you, baby. You know I'll never hurt you. You also need to know that I'm not here because I feel guilty. I'm here because I want to be. Bells, just stay with me tonight. We'll see how things go. Please."

She looked up at him with a sad smile, "Okay. Under one condition."

Here it was. Edward braced himself, waiting for her to tell him it was just temporary. That as soon as she was over this, the divorce was still going to happen. Instead the words that came out of her mouth made him laugh as happy tears came to his eyes. She had smiled up at him and said, "I want to stop at the house and pick up Jasper Cat."

"You don't have to go back there...if it's too hard for you I can go myself."

"No. I mean, it's not because I'm afraid...it's a...mess," she said for lack of a better word.

"Oh. Well, we'll stop there and we'll get everything cleaned up later. Why don't you hit that call button. While you get your discharge stuff in order, if you're up for it, I happen to know a group of very anxious people in the hallway. You up for the company?"

"Yeah. Send in the troops."

Reaching for his phone, he sent Alice a text. Bella looked at him confused. "I told you, I'm not going anywhere. I sent Ally a text."

He barely finished his explanation when the door flew open. Emmett was the first one through it. "Bella!" His loud voice boomed, causing Bella to grab for Edward. It broke his heart to see Emmett's face. It shattered his heart to see his Bella afraid of his brother. "Bells, I..." Emmett started to say but Edward stopped him. Bella looked embarrassed.

"Emmett, she's just a little shaken up..."

"Em, I'm so, so sorry!" Bella cried.

"Alright, tell her hello and then we should probably get going. She needs some time," Carlisle said, giving Bella a warm smile. After Bella apologized again, Esme clenched her hand, Alice gave her a slight hug, Jasper waved with a reassuring smile, Rosalie threatened to chop off anyone's balls who dares to touch her again, Emmett stood by the door, and Carlisle told her to call if she needed anything. They were about to walk out the door when the doctor walked in to get Bella to fill out some papers. He went to tell them goodbye when a thought hit him. He didn't have a vehicle.

"Jazz, hey, um...can you stay for a minute?"

"Yeah, man, what's up?" Jasper asked once everyone else had gone.

"I don't have a car," Edward whispered, feeling like a idiot.

"What do you mean? Dude, how the hell did you get here?" Jasper whispered back.

"Tanya." This time he mouthed it.

Jasper raised his eyebrows and nodded his head in understanding. Then he looked back and forth between Bella and Edward before handing over his car keys and saying, "You seriously fucking owe me one. Don't you think she's going to notice you have my car?"

"Jazz, I can't tell her I was with Tanya last night!"

"Why the hell not? You can't just lie to her!"

"I can't tell her after she's been through all this."

"Edward, I'm going to be honest with you," lowering his voice to barely a whisper he said, "She was out on a date last night. I love Bells just as much as everyone else but I don't want to see you get hurt either. Just tell her the truth."

After Bella signed about three hundred papers, was given instructions on her pain meds, and got changed, they headed to the parking lot. When he walked towards the Whitlock's Lexus, Bella gave him a funny look. "I...um...didn't bring a vehicle."

They had reached the car before Bella said anything, she stopped before getting in the door, looking back at him as he put her bag of old clothes in the backseat. "Edward, everyone was here already. They couldn't get a hold of you. Who brought you? Where were you at?"

**I hope it was worth the wait...this was by far the hardest chapter I've written so far. The next ones will be better. Review and tell me what you think! **

**HUGE FREAKING SHOUT OUT TO CAIT! I love you for putting up with me!**

**Until next time, LP xo**


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry no updates since Monday, I had a lot going on and didn't want to just feed you a crappy chappie ;) I absolutely LOVE all of the reviews and support I'm getting from all of you! So...Cait you rock and I'll keep this short! I know you would rather read a chapter than an author's note so here it is! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously: They had reached the car before Bella said anything, she stopped before getting in the door, looking back at him as he put her bag of old clothes on the backseat. "Edward, everyone was here already. They couldn't get a hold of you. Who brought you? Where were you at?"**

**Chapter 13**

Edward looked at Bella, knowing his face was reflecting the inner battle he was waging. He'd messed up in the past. Big time. There was a chance this was it. That after everything they've been through they could fix their broken relationship. He knew Jasper was right. If he wasn't honest with her, they would be right back to where they'd left off. The problem was, it wasn't just some random girl, like the guys she'd been with lately. This was Tanya.

So, there he stood, in the middle of a parking lot, with a damn-if-I-do-damned-if-I-don't mentality. The way Bella was standing hid the side of her face where the evidence of the physical abuse she'd endured broadcast itself. For a second, he could almost pretend that she was safe and with him for good. He knew better, though. It was like their relationship. They could keep lying to each other, keep pretending everything is fine until one of them gave in and ended it.

"Tanya. I was with her last night. She drove me because my car is still in the parking lot over at Chrome." It all came out in a rush.

"Oh. Um...I suppose I deserved that," she said quietly, lowering herself down into the seat and closing the door.

_Okay. So she didn't try to hit me. This is good. _What wasn't good was how painful it looked for her to get into the car and sit down. Picking up his pace, he got in, wanting to just get her in a nice comfy bed where she could just relax and heal. "Are you sure you want to go back to the house?"

"I can't avoid it forever," Bella said adamantly. "You have to promise you won't freak out. It's pretty bad."

Pretty bad did not even cover it. He could tell there had been a struggle inside from the way it looked outside. The first clue was the broken window and the glass shattered all over the porch. The next clue were the few drops of blood at the top of the stairs of that same porch. While he hesitated to go in, Bella pushed past him. The scene inside made his heart stop.

The throw rugs right inside the door were bunched up and out of order. The small table where keys, mail, and everything else ended up was knocked over. The two small steps that separated the front entrance from their living room had a few more drops of blood. Looking into the brightly lit room he saw that a leg from their glass coffee table had broken, causing the glass to hit the hard wood and shatter. Everything in the room looked like it had been touched by the violence. Even the tall lamp was on its side, half of it shattered.

The window above the couch was the one he could see from outside. It was a large bay window that Bella would sit at for hours and read. He could remember all of those nights he'd have to work late at the firm. She'd always be curled up with an over sized pillow and a book waiting for him. She'd always hated to sleep without him. He sometimes wondered about the times he went away for business trips. He often thought of her curled up in that window, reading entire novels. That was his Bella. Her love of books far surpassed her love for anything else—though she claimed she loved him more. Now, I guess it was back to her books.

"Edward?" He spun around, not realizing she'd come up behind him during his daydreaming.

"Hey, Bells. I think this whole window is probably going to need replaced. I'll have Emmett come over later and put a tarp up. Are these the only two rooms with damage?"

"I'm sorry," Bella said as she nodded, looking down.

"Huh uh. No way. You are not apologizing for this, do you understand me? None of this was your fault. You had no idea he would try something like this. I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure you never have to worry about this again but I'm damn proud of you, baby. You fought back."

"I never should have..."

"Stop it. Come on, you need to rest. Why don't you grab a few books and movies? My apartment is kind of empty. I'll grab Jasper Cat and meet you in the car."

She still wouldn't meet his gaze but he could see her mouth turn up in a slight smile before she turned away to head for their entertainment room. This room was not a normal man cave or a place where friends gathered when they came over. This was a place of their own. It was a place for the two of them to escape. It wasn't a very large room but along every wall were floor to ceiling bookshelves. The only items in the room besides shelves and books were a small table with a lamp beside a chaise lounge and a baby grand piano. He had always loved to play. His Aunt Elizabeth taught him during the summers when he would visit her. He hadn't played since he'd lost his son.

Stepping off the last step into the basement, he saw Jasper Cat curled in a corner, sound asleep. His long tail was the whole way up past his head. He laughed, making the cat stir. As soon as the oversized cat saw him he began to purr. "Miss me buddy?"

Five minutes later they were headed to the apartment with Jasper Cat on the backseat in his carrier. "Edward, we need to go get your car. Jazz is eventually going to need his back."

"I'll take care of it once you're settled in."

"I don't want you to wait on me. Really, let's just go get it now." She secretly loved when he took care of her like this but her inner feminist would never admit that to him. It's not like she deserved it, though. She couldn't let him get attached again.

"You can't drive," he said, as if he couldn't believe she'd forgotten.

"Oh. Well, I can come along with you and that way you won't have to make a special..."

"Bella. Stop. I'm taking you to the apartment. You hardly got any sleep in the past twenty-four hours. I'm sure you're exhausted. Besides, we're almost there. See? It's right there." _How much sleep did you get last night? Stop it, Bella. You have no right to ask him those questions. Look at what you did last night. _

The apartment building was huge. She had no doubt that he lived in the very top, biggest penthouse available. He was carrying both of her bags and the cat carrier, refusing to let her carry anything as they entered the elevator. It took them what felt like five whole minutes to reach the top—where his penthouse was. They came to a stop in front of a door and she noticed him digging through his pockets after he set everything down. After a few moments and hearing him mutter a 'dammit' under his breath, Bella sighed, "What's wrong?"

"Keys. Keys would come in handy right now."

"You don't have your keys? Try the door anyway. Maybe by some crazy chance you left it unlocked?"

"I never leave my doors unlocked. In fact, I remember fighting with you about doing just that every night when we lived together."

"Just try it! If you're not going to try, then call someone to bring you a spare! " Bella was becoming annoyed now, the pain in her right side was growing. She leaned against the wall as shooting pain went down her side. She sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Bells? Hey, you alright?" Edward asked, finally giving up his pocket search and rubbing her arm.

She didn't know if it was the pain, the sleeplessness, or just how much she missed him but she could feel her eyes begin to tear up. She shook her head to tell him she definitely wasn't okay and he immediately pulled her gently towards him.

"I'm going to call dad and tell him to bring me the other key. As soon as we get in there, I'm going to get you settled into my ridiculously expensive bed and kill anyone who dare disturbs you for the next twelve hours."

Bella smiled at that and pulled away from him. While he turned his back to call Carlisle, she reached down and turned the knob. She was absolutely shocked when it popped open. She hadn't expected it to actually work...Edward spun around just as surprised. The surprise quickly turned to worry as he pushed her behind him and opened the door slowly the rest of the way.

"I thought you said you never leave your door unlocked," Bella asked him flatly, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't. Ever," he said quietly.

As they stepped over the threshold of the apartment, it was Edwards turn to suck in a breath. Bella looked away, completely shocked. Tanya Denali was sitting on the large wrap around couch watching something with a bunch of drunk, tan college kids partying. "Tanya?"

The bitch jumped up when she heard her name, obviously not even realizing until then that they were there. "Oh, hey, sweetie. You left your keys in my car. I didn't want to leave them on the door where anyone could grab them and I also didn't know if you had a spare set so I didn't want to leave them in here."

Bella felt her stomach clench, all other pain forgotten. _Of course that's where his keys were. _She fought the urge to lunge past Edward and take the bitch down once and for all. She kept reminding herself that she had wanted this to happen. She was the one who called Tanya to go out with him for Emmett's birthday. _Are they together?_

"Ugh...well...I'm here now so you can..."

"Oh my, God! Bella!" Tanya must have finally peeled her eyes off Edward and taken notice of Bella's beaten appearance. She gave Bella a sympathetic look before asking what happened.

"She's been through a lot, Tanya. Thank you for bringing my keys up," he said it as a clear dismissal, one that made Bella want to do a happy dance around the room—regardless of the pain.

"Sure, no problem," Tanya said, distractedly before adding sweetly, "I'll see you later. Call me if you need anything."

Bella and Edward stepped out of her way to let her pass. "I had no idea she was going to be here. I didn't even realize she knew where I lived."

"Well she was and she does," Bella said, shaking her head, "Look, I really don't give a shit. This is just temporary, right? Let me get some sleep." _God, I hope that was convincing._

Edward didn't say anything as he grabbed their bags and cat and led her through the large suite to a bedroom. Unlike the rest of the house, which was so bright white it was almost sterile looking, this room was much darker. To her surprise, he had a dark purple comforter identical to the one at home. The large bed was in the middle of the room. There was a small desk with his laptop and work stuff on it, a large floor lamp, and a small bedside table. The curtains blocked out most of the sun. It looked like heaven to her at the moment.

Breathing in deeply, Bella smiled as she took in that wonderful Edward Cullen scent. She was surprised to find how empty this place really was. As they had walked through the place she had seen the typical furniture necessities with a tv but other than that, it was just a bright whiteness. There wasn't one picture or anything personal anywhere. She watched as he let Jasper Cat out, who waltzed across the floor like he already owned the place. He then unzipped her bag and handed her a pair of pajamas.

At the hospital, she had hesitantly let him help her into her shirt. It was one you pull over your head, something that Jacob hadn't realized would be difficult for her. Her whole right side looked like someone had taken a paint can and dumped deep blue paint on her. She made sure all of the shirts that were packed were button up ones. Now, he looked at her awkwardly. "Do you need..."

"Nope. I'll be fine. Thank you, though," she couldn't believe how awkward that was. Here they were, the couple who used to shower together every morning, and her husband was avoiding her gaze like a nervous schoolboy. "Go get Jasper Cat's stuff set out. I'll yell when I'm ready for bed."

He looked up at her then and asked, "Do you need me to help you get into the bed?"

"No," she said, confused, "I just thought that maybe you'd like to...you know what? Never mind. I'll be fine. I'll see you in a few hours."

She watched as he nodded his head and walked away. She wanted to run after him, pull him back, let him undress her, lie with her on the bed, and cuddle until they fell asleep. Instead, Bella let out a series of groans as she got changed and laid down. She turned over to see what time it was when she noticed something on his bed stand. While there were no pictures on any of the walls or tables that she had seen, on the bedside table, the perfect height to meet her gaze, was a picture of the two of them. It was taken at Ally and Jazz's wedding. She and Edward were the best man and maid of honor. The photographer had tried to get a good picture of the two of them all night but to no avail. Edward wasn't big on having his picture taken and always looked the wrong way or turned so part of him was covered.

The two of them had just snuck out to the gazebo in the back, wanting some privacy. As she stood in the middle of the gazebo, he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her. His hands were fisted and the right one came up over her heart. She was kissing his knuckles and he was kissing her bare shoulder when the photographer caught them. It was one of the most beautiful pictures she'd ever seen yet she hadn't realized it was taken until the photographer sent the proof book to Alice a couple of weeks later.

She couldn't believe he had this picture. It was framed in their little entertainment room and it was a large blown up picture given to them by Alice for their one year anniversary—which was only a month away from Alice and Jasper's. Poor Esme had her hands full that summer. He could remember her worrying that Emmett might decide to follow suit but he and Rose decided on a long engagement. A ridiculously long engagement.

Bella smiled to herself, thinking about that crazy summer. Alice's wedding in June and theirs in August. It was crazy and wonderful all at the same time. The best part had been their honeymoon. They visited a small private island where they stayed at a small house on the beach. Sex had always been rough with Edward. It wasn't a bad thing though. She'd be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it. That night, though, he took it slow.

"_Bells, we've been traveling for hours. Let's just get some rest."_

"_I just want to go down and see the water. Just a couple minutes."_

_Bella had always love the beach. Every beach vacation they had been on, no matter how late it was when they first arrived, she always went down and felt the water. The water was warm and the moon was high above them but not quite full. She could almost feel Edward's gaze on her back...she knew he was checking her out. Finally having enough of the water, Bella turned around and saw Edward watching her intently, a small smile on his face._

"_Okay, I'm ready for bed now," she had whispered in a husky voice as she wrapped her arms around him. _

"_Oh, really?" he asked playfully, "Well, I guess I should really get you into bed. I mean, what kind of husband would I be if I didn't take my tired new wife directly to bed?"_

_Bella giggled as he threw her over his shoulder and carried her into the small house. He set her down on the bed and kissed her gently. He kept going, working his way from her lips to her neck. He loved control—something she had learned very quickly about him. Over the years, they had learned each other's dirty little secrets and his was a fantasy of control. _

_They'd never admit their little BDSM sessions to anyone but what happened in their bedroom was pretty mind blowing. The best part for her was this journey had always been theirs alone. He'd never told any of his old girlfriends about it. While he loved control, she loved the idea of being controlled. Who would have guessed that little bookworm Bella could take what Edward could dish out._

_They like to role play and Bella knew her place. Even though it was her honeymoon, she knew what this was leading to and decided to still pick up that role she knew so well. She started to unbutton her __top—the first of her rules to follow—undress for him. She always enjoyed this part because it was so easy to tease him. He liked to think he had total control but they both knew he was the one totally controlled by her. He never hurt her, it was just something they liked to do. _

_As Bella tried to do her duty and undress, he stopped her, "Not tonight. I want to do the honors. Just lie back and enjoy."_

_She was happy to oblige. Once he had her naked, he continued to her breast, gently biting her nipples before kissing his way to her legs. Kissing down over her knees and back up in between her thighs. She cried out, running her fingers over his strong shoulders. When his warm tongue stroked her clit, she cried out again, this time fisting his hair in her hands. She wouldn't last long this way and he knew it. _

_He pushed himself up so that he was now over top of her. She reached in between them and unbuckled his jeans. Pulling them the rest of the way off along with his boxers, she stroked his cock a few times before he grabbed her hand and lifted it above her head. She closed her eyes in absolute bliss, waiting for him to start the kissing assault. When it didn't come, she opened her eyes and screamed. It wasn't her husband looking down at her. It was Mike Newton._

Bella came awake with a start. She sat up in bed, completely out of breath. Looking around, she realized she was in Edward's apartment...and that she was now crying. _God, I'm so pathetic. _She wiped her tears and tried to fix her hair, praying Edward wouldn't come in and see her like this. When she decided she was acceptable, she made her way out to find him. To her surprise, the apartment was empty.

Trying to remind herself that she needed to get over him, that she shouldn't feel so damn disappointed about this, she grabbed a book and plopped down on the couch. She instantly regretted it. Tears sprang back to her eyes as she looked around for the pain pills she'd gotten. Edward had them when they left the hospital...

She found his jacket and began to dig through it, still not finding them. The pain was searing and everything was sore. Even places that shouldn't be. She assumed that was Mike's doing. _Why the hell can't I remember? _Confused and broken, Bella slid down to the floor and pulled her legs up to her chest. _This is no one's fault but my own. I have to leave. I have to leave before he gets back. _

She knew she didn't have a car but her cell phone was on the pillow in the bedroom—must have been left there by Edward. She crawled, tears streaming to the bedroom. Grabbing the cell phone she called the only person she knew was close enough to come help her—Alice.

"Ally," Bella sobbed into the phone, "I...I need you. I need a ride."

"Bella? What's going on? Calm down, sweetie. Are you okay?" Alice's little voice sounded even more concerned than normal.

"No...I have to get out of here," Bella managed to get out.

"Where? What's wrong?" Alice was pleading now.

Bella was trying desperately to tell her where to come get her but she found herself short on breath. It felt like her lungs were collapsing. She finally managed to choke out 'penthouse' and Alice knew immediately where she was. Promising to pick her up, Alice ended the call and Bella put her head between her legs. She recognized this from a few of those nights after she lost the baby. She would sit on the rocker, head between her legs, as panic overtook her. _It's just a panic attack. I'm fine. It's just a panic attack... _She went over this mantra over and over until she was able to leave. She left everything except her phone, jacket, shoes and the clothes she had on. Pulling the collar of her jacket up to cover her hideously bruised face she headed down to the lobby.

"Bella? What's going on? Calm down, sweetie. Are you okay?" Edward, Emmett, and Jasper all quit talking when they heard Alice's concerned voice in the next room. They were discussing what was going to happen with Mike. Emmett had called him right before he left the apartment to tell Edward he planned to hunt down and kill Bella's offender. As much as Edward himself wanted to do the same, he told his brother good luck finding the guy because the police couldn't. Emmett decided to go with him to pick up his car. Now, after dropping the car off, the three of them were discussing the implications of what this could mean for Bella.

As soon as Edward heard the panic in Alice's voice and Bella's name, he took off. _I never should have left her. What if he found her again? _He ran every red light, stop sign, and almost hit a pedestrian but he made amazing time. Barely slamming the car into park he jumped out and ran into the large apartment complex. He took the elevator, knowing he'd never make it to the top floor by foot as quickly. It took forever, the longest fucking elevator ride of his life. _Please, God, let her be okay!_

As soon as the doors slid open he jumped out, nearly slamming into the person waiting to get on it. He went to yell back that he was sorry when he stopped and did a double take. There she was, her gray pea-coat was on over top her pajamas, her hair a tangled mess. It was obvious she'd been crying and her chest was heaving up and down as if she couldn't breathe. He could see from a few feet away that her entire body was shaking and she had her arms wrapped around herself as if trying to get it to stop.

"Bella! Baby, what happened? What is it? Are you okay? Is he here?" Edward was too worked up to realize he was firing question after question at her. Finally, she burst into tears again and leaned back against the wall. This time, he ran towards her, pulling her towards him. "What happened?"

"I...I...have to leave. I can't stay here. This isn't...this doesn't change anything. Not fair...I don't want...you shouldn't have to..." Edward held her close as she tried to get out what she was trying to tell him. He got the gist of it though. This was it already. She was going to leave him.

"No," he said firmly, holding her as close as he could, careful not to hurt her. "Bella, you can't leave me. Please, please don't leave me, baby. I need you so fucking much. I know I'm not the man you deserve. I know that. I know I'm too damn selfish, that I need to let you go but I can't. I'll never speak to Tanya again. EVER. I'll...I'll agree to never having children. You can see Jake whenever you want. Just please, God, don't go."

Bella was sobbing even harder now. She was wrapped up in so much emotion, she felt dizzy. She loved him so, so much. She just wanted him to be happy. Being in his arms now, with so much hurt and exhaustion, she knew she couldn't let go. Not even if she wanted to could she walk away from him. She leaned even farther into him, aware that her tears were staining his gray shirt and they were in the middle of a hallway where anyone could see them.

She was about to say something about it when she felt herself being lifted up. Edward carried her back into the apartment and shut the door behind them. He went to set her on the bed but she tightened her grip to let him know she didn't want him to go anywhere. "Bells, you need your pills. Let me just get you your pills and some water. God, I'm so, so sorry. I never should have left you."

She allowed him to lay her down and the few seconds he was gone felt like hours. He got her to calm down long enough to take the pills. Sitting back down on the bed, he pulled her onto his lap and held her. He began to rock her to sleep when she remembered that he had left. "Where were you?" It came out as a whisper.

"Taking Jazz's car back. Em went with me to drop it off. I was there when you called Alice."

"Alice...shit...I forgot..."

"It's okay. She sent me a text to show you," he said, pulling his phone off the bedside table and flipping it open. It was a text message from Alice. "Show this to Bella. I know you'll take care of her. Bella- He. Loves. You."

Bella could feel the drugs kicking in full force now. He began to sing to her like he did when they first started dating and she let herself close her eyes. She gave up fighting sleep. She knew he'd be there if the nightmares came. A few moments later she drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

**Are things finally turning around or is Bella just too exhausted to know? Let me know what you think! Real life is sucking right now and comments give me the confidence to keep this going! Until next time, LP xo **


	14. Chapter 14

**I am SO excited about all of the reviews I have been getting! I am trying to make sure I send a message back to everyone and I feel terrible if I missed you! Much love to the reviewers and also my dedicated readers! You make my life a whole lot happier! Cait, I love ya, girl! Keep on rocking!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: Bella could feel the drugs kicking in full force now. He began to sing to her like he did when they first started dating and she let herself close her eyes. She gave up fighting sleep. She knew he'd be there if the nightmares came. A few moments later she drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.**

**Chapter 14**

Bella woke up slowly, reveling in the warmth and comfort of her husband's body. She felt his chest rise and fall as he slept soundly, even though he was sitting up. Looking up at his face and she ran her finger along his cheek. She felt something on his skin and pulled her hand away quickly. Just below his eye were dried tears. _He was crying? He never __cries._ She reached back up to wipe them away and ended up making him stir instead. A few seconds later, he opened his eyes and gave a beautiful, lazy smile.

"Hey," and then as if remembering what happened before they fell asleep, he looked her over and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"A little stiff and sore but I really, really like those pills," she joked.

He smiled again and looked at the alarm clock. "Two a.m. Do you want to get up?"

"No," she said quietly, snuggling into him.

"Alright, how about we lie down then?"

"Mmm, good idea," Bella practically moaned as her muscles were finally able to stretch out. She went to stretch her arms above her head and cried out. _I have to freaking quit doing that!_

"You okay?" Edward asked, looking her over. His eyes resting on the stitches on the inside of her right arm.

"Yeah, I'm fine." When he still kept looking her over she asked, "I do look pretty hideous, don't I?"

"No. Bella, you could be eight different shades of blue and I'd still think you were beautiful."

She smiled at that and the thought of how amazing he was once again hit her. _I don't deserve this. I have to tell him this is over. I have to do it now. _She knew she couldn't. She thought of the only thing she could think to distract her. "You need sleep. Tomorrow's Monday."

"I talked to Rose when I picked up Em. I'm not going anywhere," he said as he got under the covers, pulling them up so she could climb in too.

Once settled, she pushed herself up to look at him. "What are you talking about? You can't just take off work..."

"Bella, I haven't missed one damn day in almost a year. Besides, Rose owes me. I took all of her cases while she and Emmett went away for the wedding. I told you, I'm not going anywhere."

"I don't want you to take off work tomorrow. I want you to live your life like you normally would."

"We'll figure this out tomorrow. Let's just get some sleep."

She knew he was avoiding something. There was something he wasn't telling her. She quickly lost the will to try to figure out what as he began to hum to her. She drifted off to sleep for the second time that night in her husband's arms.

Bella woke up the next morning to Edward running his fingers up and down her arm, holding a phone out to her. She recognized it as hers. "Bells, hey, you have a phone call."

Groaning, she grabbed it and answered, "What?"

"Well, good morning to you too, sunshine," Jake's familiar voice teased her. Before she could answer, he changed back to serious, "Sorry I didn't call you last night. Leah's not too happy with me right now which is an improvement from yesterday. Speaking of, why is Cullen answering your phone?"

Bella sat up, wincing silently before snapping back, "She should be mad at you. It was her birthday. As far as the other issue, we are not even going there."

"Bella, what are you doing? I thought you were really committed to ending this."

"I was...am... Look, I don't want to do this with you. Go buy Leah some flowers and cheer her up."

"Alright...wait, how are you doing?"

"I don't know. I'm really sore."

"Did they find Mike?"

"I don't know. I literally came back here and crashed."

"You're somewhere safe, right?" Concern drenched his question.

"Jake, yes."

"Alight. You'll call me if..."

"Jake, I'm safe. I promise you."

After reassuring him a few more times she finally got him off the phone. Looking back, she saw Edward absently playing with her hair. "You gave me the phone." She said it as if stating a fact.

"You left me. Jake didn't leave Leah," he stated back.

"No. He didn't. They're getting married."

"You aren't angry with him."

"I have no reason to be. You slept with Tanya."

"You were shoving divorce papers down my throat for the past nine months."

They had been going back and forth matter-of-factly. Challenging each other until she asked, "What makes you so damn confident that I'm not still doing it?"

"I'm not," the way he said it broke her heart. His eyes were silently pleading with her.

"I really do appreciate everything you've done..."

"Don't fucking do it, Bella. Don't you dare sit there and play this off as a friend helping a friend. Don't do it!"

"Edward, we can't just go back to where we were before. I can't."

"We can. We can work on this. We...we can call that lady, Kathy, from the hospital. She could help us," he pleaded out loud now.

"Edward, please..."

"What is it, Bella? What is it about me that turns you off so fucking much? Is it my son? Is that it? You hate me because it was my baby that we lost?"

"No!"

"Then what is it? You fought with me just as much as I fought with you! The two weeks after we lost him you barely said two words to me. When you did, it was telling me I was doing something wrong. You wouldn't even talk to me the day of the funeral! I handled everything. I made the arrangements. I spoke to all the guests. I answered the question of how you were a million fucking times. You know what, Bella? Not one person...not your mom, not Charlie, not Jacob, no one on your side ever even told me they were sorry or bothered to ask how I was doing! Not one. I lost someone too that day, Bella. I fucking lost someone too!"

Bella didn't know what to say. Hearing him say this hurt worse than anything Mike Newton could ever have inflicted on her. This is why he deserved more. Tanya would have stood beside him that day, making sure she spoke to everyone. She would have cried at the right times, she would have held him when he was upset, she would have been perfect. She was perfect. She was the perfect trophy wife for him.

"Edward, you went home with Tanya..."

"Don't even go there. You can't keep coming back to this bullshit about Tanya..."

"Fine! What about you and how you 'handled' everything! You just wanted to get it over with! Christ, Edward, you tried to throw the only pictures I even owned of him away!"

"Bullshit! I didn't fucking know they were in there! You were the one who wanted to throw everything of his away! You wouldn't even let me keep a blanket of his!"

"I couldn't see it anymore! You have no idea what it felt to have to walk past that room every single fucking day and not be able to go in and pick him up! You don't know..."

"I do know! It'll be a year in four days. In four days it will be one year since our little boy died! Do you know what? It'll also be a year since I lost someone else. I lost my wife. You were a complete ghost. You would just walk around the house, not speaking to me, not speaking to Alice, not doing anything. I wanted to talk to someone. That's all I wanted. I wanted to talk to you! Do you know why I went home with Tanya? Because she asked me to talk about it. She said I looked like I needed someone to talk to. That was the only time she was ever right. The only time she offered me something that I even remotely wanted."

"Why don't you just sign the God damn papers then, Edward?" Bella wanted to scream and yell and hit him. "If she's so fucking perfect than go to her. Go to her and cry about how fucked up your wife is. I'm sorry, your ex-wife. Tell her how you want a child. She'll give you one even though I couldn't. She won't kill it. She'll keep it safe because she was always meant to be with you. Always!"

Bella was sobbing now. Edward was looking at her, mouth agape, as if he couldn't believe she'd just said what she did. He looked like he was going to start crying too. She had to leave. She had to get the hell out of here while she still had the courage to walk away. Pulling the covers back, she went to stand up but Edward grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

"No. You're not leaving. Not again. Not like this."

She pulled away from him and stood up. She made her way to the door before he caught up to her, putting his hand on it so she couldn't open it. Instant panic set in. "Dammit, Edward, let me out!"

_They were just about to leave the bar and head home when Angela said she wasn't feeling well. Ben had offered to take her and Mike both home but Bella had been with Mike most of the night and told Ben not to worry about taking Mike home. She knew he wanted to get Angela somewhere she could rest. "Really, it's fine. Just drop us both off at my place and I can give him a ride home."_

_Mike had looked at her with a smile, "You're a little tipsy. I could always just crash on your couch."_

_She had felt funny about that. Bringing another guy home was something she'd never done before. It didn't feel right. It was the home Edward had paid for, the home he wanted to raise his children in. She reluctantly agreed. Vowing to herself that he would go nowhere near the bed they'd conceived their child in._

_They had gotten to the house a little after two and she went to get blankets for him. The linens were kept in a small closet beside their bedroom. After grabbing what she needed she straightened and realized he was right behind her. "Mike..."_

_That's when he reached out, grabbing her ass and pulling her whole body toward him. "What are you...no..." She tried to fight him and he pulled back a little._

"_Come on. You were all over me at the bar. No one has to know."_

"_Mike, look, I'm really..."_

"_A tease. That's what you are," he went to grab her again but she ducked under his arm and down the stairs. Her cell phone was on the table by the door. Her plan was to get to the door, grab her phone, get outside, and tell him she was taking him home or calling the police. True to her nature, the plan didn't work because she tripped and fell down half of the stairs._

_She landed on her stomach and felt Mike grab her waist and pull her up before slamming her into the wall. She kneed him in the balls and took off for the door. This time, she made it but he came up behind her. Slamming his large palm onto the door to prevent her from opening it, he laughed at her. "You're not going anywhere, Isabella." She turned to face him and started beating on his chest, his arms, anything she could to deter him. She had been sobbing by this point._

"Bella, Bella, Stop...I'm not trying to hurt you! I just want to talk! Bella!" Edward's cries brought her back to the present. She had been hitting his chest. She stopped and backed away, sick to her stomach. He wasn't Mike. He wouldn't hurt her. _Oh __my, God__._

Edward watched in horror as she tried to claw at the door before turning around and beating on his chest. He had never seen her like this before, ever. At first, he wondered if she really did hate him that much. So much that she'd try to hurt him. Soon after, he realized what she was saying, "Let me go. Please, please, let me go!"

It wasn't him she was trying to get away from. She was still hitting him, it broke his heart to know that she was fighting with all her might and he wasn't even a little sore. The bastard she was trying to get away from wouldn't have felt a damn thing either. He didn't know what to do. He was afraid to touch her but also afraid she would hurt herself. "Bella, Bella, Stop...I'm not trying to hurt you! I just want to talk! Bella!"

After awhile, she finally seemed to realize what was happening. He watched as her face went from showing terror to confusion to absolute shock. "Edward..." she was mumbling incoherently as she brought one of her arms up, her good arm, and dug her fingers into her hair, right above her temple. "I...you...door..."

He stepped towards her, hands up in the universal sign for I'm-not-going-to-hurt-you. She didn't back away but he noticed she was starting to pull at her hair. "I'm okay. Bells, baby, I'm fine. Try to relax."

Now, he heard exactly what she was saying, even through the mumbling, "I hurt you and I killed our son." She was repeating it over and over again like a sick prayer. He also noticed her breathing was speeding up...another panic attack was about to hit. He tried to talk to her but she was too busy dealing with her own inner struggle to worry about him. Finally giving up, he stood there, making sure she wasn't going to hurt herself. After awhile, he decided to put his arms out hoping it would distract her. To his surprise, the second he lifted them, she ran to him.

As she slammed into him, he could feel her whole body shaking, just like the night before. This wasn't good. She was going to need some type of meds to calm her down. The pain pills would make her tired which would calm her but she had already slept from about three in the afternoon yesterday until seven this morning. He couldn't just keep putting her to sleep. He decided to pick her up and carry her out to the living room. He hadn't ordered cable but needed something to distract her. Walking over to the small stack of DVD's he had, he grabbed the one with nothing on the cover. Still holding her, he awkwardly got the DVD into the player and sat down with her on his lap.

Seconds later, the sound of the lullaby he'd written her filled the room as he watched himself playing the piano on a small stage. Bella seemed to be relaxing against him as he ran his fingers through her hair. The videographer cut over to Bella, who was standing at the altar in a beautiful ivory dress. Bella, Alice, and Rosalie had gone to great lengths on keeping the dress a secret from him. They had even refused to tell Jasper or Emmett in case one of them spilled the details.

When he saw her come down the aisle on Charlie's arm, he knew it was perfect for her. The dress itself was pretty plain with only a little detail at the top. Over that white dress was a long sleeved lace jacket that came down over the dress all the way to the bottom. At the bottom, the back flailed out in a short train. It was perfect on her. She wore ballet slippers, an idea of Alice's. It was more about safety then looks when it came to Bella in heels. Her hair was half up and half down. The 'up' part was framed by a pearl headband and at the back of her head was a simple shoulder-length veil.

The two of them watched the scene play out for awhile, relaxed, until the part where they exchanged their vowels came on. Originally, they were going to do the traditional vows but decided against it. He and Bella had both talked about wanting a baby. They weren't expecting to actually conceive on their honeymoon but they weren't taking measures to stop it. The both wanted their future children to be talked about in their vows. Edward had gone first. "Isabella Marie Swan, I promise to love you and our children unconditionally. I vow to be faithful, loyal, and loving for the rest of forever."

"Edward Anthony Cullen, I promise to love you and our children unconditionally. I vow to be faithful, patient, and loving for the rest of forever."

This is where Emmett had dug through his pockets for what felt like forever before Jasper realized he actually had the rings—Edward still didn't know why Emmett thought he had them to begin with. Once the rings were on, Edward was told he could kiss his bride. Now, on the floor in his apartment, the both absently put their hand on Bella's stomach. It was hard to believe so much had happened in such a short amount of time.

They had decided to get married the summer Edward finished his law degree. Bella had gone back for her Master's and had done some volunteer work. Edward knew that was one thing about him having money that she loved. She could volunteer her time instead of worrying about making a living. They had both just finished up and Bella had two interviews lined up after the wedding. She was offered one of the two jobs in January, two days after they had found out she was pregnant.

They both knew it would be a lot of stress. He was working his ass off working for Rose's dad, trying to prove he could be successful even though he didn't need the money—a concept most people didn't seem to understand. He wasn't home a lot and when he was he just wanted to sleep. Over the weekends he, Jasper, and Emmett put the baby's room together but other than that, Bella put her career on hold to focus on the baby. They were both so, so happy to be blessed with this child.

Bella had lost the baby in the middle of August. Neither one of them had remembered their one year anniversary. They were too busy grieving separately to celebrate something together. Then Bella left for Forks and the rest, as they say, is history.

Three months after that, he'd gone to meet her, saw Quil, and ended up bringing her back to Seattle. They'd had little contact over the next nine months until he'd gotten that devastating call the morning after he slept with Tanya. Nine months and here they were. Their child lost, their marriage failed, now his wife was dealing with something neither had ever imagined would happen to someone they knew, let alone her.

The video had gone through them telling people goodbye, of him and Emmett trying to block Bella from the sunflower seeds being thrown at them, and now it showed the reception as Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen were announced. As the camera focused on the two of them dancing their first dance, the Bella in his arms surprised him by digging her face between his neck and shoulder as she hugged him to her.

He hugged back and whispered, "I don't care about what happened in the past. I still love you. I always will. I don't know what to do to prove that to you. I don't know how to fix any of my mistakes. I just want another chance."

She had pulled away a little and now her head was resting on his shoulder so that he could see her face. She looked completely exhausted, even after the hours of sleep she'd gotten. She sighed and said, "I don't know how to fix any of this either."

"Well, I guess the first question is, do we want to fix this? No. I already know I want to. This is all you, Bells. Do you want us to try to fix us?"

Bella looked at him for a long moment. He was watching her intently, looking for any possible sign that the answer was yes. Finally, she nodded her head, giving him the answer he so desperately wanted. "But I'm scared."

"Of what, angel?" he asked quietly, promising himself he would erase these fears if it killed him in the process.

"The only thing I know right now is how much I love you. I'm just scared that I can't be what you need. I mean, look at me. I had a panic attack over a closed door. I don't know that I never want children ever again. I don't know that you can accept that. I don't know that you aren't still going to be seeing your ex behind my back. I don't know if your family hates—God, what they much think of what I've done! I don't understand how you can still love me. I don't know if I will ever be able to cope with losing our son..."

"I'm scared to, Bella. Everything you've mentioned, in some way, I'm scared of too. Do you want to know what scares me more than anything, though? I could maybe deal with everything else if there was this one thing I wasn't constantly terrified of. Bella, I'm scared that you really want us to end and that you don't love me enough to stay with me. If I had you with me for the rest of my life, I could learn to cope with every other fear I have. I'm so, so afraid that you've already given up. That I'm not going to be able to fix this."

"It's not just you that has things to fix. I've been trying to live without you. I _tried_ to give up. Remember when you saw me with that guy at the bar a few months ago? You asked me how I could get over us so easily. It was a show. I couldn't do it. I can't do it. Mike Newton," she shivered as she said his name, "happened because I couldn't give up on us. I just don't want you to be dragged down because I have to fix myself."

"Don't ever think that, Bella. I know you have a lot you need to work on. I understand but let me be there to help you. I will do anything in my power to help you be happy again. If you don't want kids, that's fine to. I'll deal with it."

"I don't want you to have to deal with it, Edward. I've been thinking a lot about it. Our son is the one thing I can never get out of my head. That was something else I was trying so desperately to give up on. I thought it would make the pain go away. I was lying to myself and to you. If we work this out, if you still want a baby, I'll try. It's not fair that I expect you to be faithful to me when I have the ability to give you a child but simply refuse to do so. I'm not guaranteeing a baby but I will promise to try."

"I don't want you to do something you aren't comfortable with..."

"I want this too, Edward. Believe me, so does my mom and Charlie. Speaking of, I don't want him to know what happened..."

"Bella, I think he'll be finding out and probably soon. I was going to talk to you about this today."

"About what? Why the hell would he know? Did someone tell him?"

"No. He might find out at work. Bells, the police never did find Mike yet."

He watched her face fall as she hugged him tighter, "It's okay though, right? I mean, it's not like he's going to come back looking for me. That's crazy. He was just really drunk and that only happens in movies. If he wanted me dead..."

This is exactly why Edward had hidden this from her last night. When she brought up work, he had told her he didn't want to go in. He wanted to be there for her which was completely true. That wasn't the whole truth though—Mike was still out there. He knew he couldn't let her leave.

"I don't want you to be afraid of that. I'm not going to let him anywhere near you. I'm sure they'll find him in a few days. I had a feeling he was going to try to run. I've seen cases like this before. A lot of time, the girls don't press charges until it's almost too late and the perpetrator is already fleeing the country, thinking he or she got away with it. They'll find him. Until then, just stay here and if you want to go out, make sure you always have someone with you, alright? You're safe. Besides, the police are supposed to be at the house going over everything and they probably don't want us there right now."

This seemed to reassure her as she let out a deep breath. She looked back at the video, smiling at something. He looked and saw her and Emmett tearing up the dance floor. He frowned when he saw Tanya dressed in a skimpy halter dress, trying to get him to dance with her. Glancing down, he noticed Bella had seen it too.

"So, we agree, right? We're officially trying to rebuild this complete train wreck of a marriage?"

"I absolutely want to," he replied.

"Then we're going to need to discuss what to do about that ex of yours," Bella said gently.

"I know," he braced himself waiting to hear what she had to say. She paused for a minute as if gathering her thoughts, looking at him as if trying to read his face. He was certain this was going to be one hell of an interesting discussion.

**Finally! ****A teensy-weensy sliver of light at the end of two years worth of a tunnel. Will they finally reach an agreement about Tanya or will it turn into more hostility? Let me know what you think! Until next time, LP xo**


	15. Chapter 15

**I hit 40 reviews and I feel like a little kid at Christmas! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Think we could get to 50? ;) **

**Yes, Cait, my dear maid of honor, Bella's wedding dress did sound familiar...6 months to go :0**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "Then we're going to need to discuss what to do about that ex of yours," Bella said gently.**

"**I know," he braced himself waiting to hear what she had to say. She paused for a minute as if gathering her thoughts, looking at him as if trying to read his face. He was certain this was going to be one hell of an interesting discussion.**

**Chapter 15**

Edward watched Bella silently, for what felt like forever. He began to wonder if he should be saying something, then he began to wonder what he would say if she asked him to say something. His and Tanya's relationship had always been a difficult one. She had liked him for as long as he could remember—before they realized what money could do for a person. He knew what he'd done with her was in no way justifiable but he knew what he had to do. He knew what he had to make Bella understand. He had no fucking idea how to do that.

He would be a total liar if he said Tanya Denali was not a pretty girl. She loved him, in the beginning, with her whole heart. It wasn't until his grandfather died that he realized just how much she wanted him and just how much he needed her. When William Edward Cullen had passed away, Edward was a junior in high school. He had been dating Tanya on and off for a couple years and he was with her when he had received the call. He would never forget that night.

_It was Tanya's sixteenth birthday. Usually, on a school night, Edward had to be home by a certain time but because his parents had loved Tanya deeply, they allowed Edward to take her to Port Angeles for dinner and a movie. All through dinner he had felt slightly jittery and Tanya seemed to notice the change in his moods. He hadn't had coffee, he wasn't overly worried about anything, he was just kind of there...but something just didn't feel right._

_During the movie, he had turned his phone off and put it into his pocket. They left Port Angeles around eight to head back home. About halfway, Edward remembered to turn his phone back on. To his surprise, there were five missed calls. Annoyed and assuming his parents were upset that he was getting home later than normal—forgetting that they had given him permission to do so—he muttered under his breath. Handing the phone to Tanya he asked her to call his mom and tell her they were on their way back. Esme would kill him if she found him driving and talking on his cell phone at the same time._

_He had been worried about his grandfather, Andrew Michael James, for a few months now and as his girlfriend and mother talked, he listened into them, praying it wasn't bad news. Four months ago, Andrew, his mother's father had gotten a really bad infection. After being in the hospital and having complication after complication, he had ended up with more problems than when he started._

_He could tell from the tone in Tanya's voice that something was definitely wrong. She also was caught glancing over at him a few times during the conversation. When it was over, she flipped the phone shut and turned towards him. "Baby, I'm not feeling so well. Why don't we pull over at the next parking lot up there? I told your mom we wouldn't be late and she's fine with that."_

_He did as she asked but when the car was in park, she didn't get out. In fact, she turned towards him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Edward, I have something to tell you...your Grandpap Cullen suffered a massive stroke."_

_Edward looked at her funny, not comprehending. "Tanya, are you sure you don't mean Pap James? He is the one in the hospital."_

"_Edward, I'm sorry, it was Carlisle's dad, Bill Cullen..."_

"_I don't understand! He was fine and healthy!"_

"_I'm so sorry," Tanya said, sliding as close as she could get and putting her arms around him._

"_I just...it doesn't make sense..." The two of them sat that way for awhile, him mumbling and her trying to calm him down. She eventually talked him into letting her drive, even though she didn't even have her permit yet. He surprised them both by crying on the way home. He sobbed like a baby. He was named in part for his father's father. He had always been close to him. Edward had gotten his love for classical music from him._

_That night, Tanya and Rose were both allowed to spend the night—though they had to sleep in Alice's room. In the end, Edward, Tanya, Emmett, Rosalie, and Alice all ended up crashed on the floor in the living room. The days of the funeral had been extremely hard and Tanya was always there. He refused to cry in front of anyone else but with her he was able to let his guard down._

Two months after that awful birthday, Edward was told that they were taking Esme's father off the ventilator for the last time. This wasn't meant to say he was getting better, not this time. Now, they were just focusing on comfort measures as the man lived his last few days. Once again, Tanya was there. She had even gone to the hospital when it was time to say their final goodbyes. Alice, Edward, and Tanya were all in the Cullen kitchen when his parents called saying they were on their way home. It was finally over. After almost six long months of taking turns sitting with the dying man, he was finally resting peacefully.

That thought alone was the only peace of mind Edward had at that point. Everyone had been stressed those several months. His parents were fighting. His siblings were anxious. Emmett had decided to experiment with drugs. Alice was solemn and depressed—which was hard for the entire family to process given her happy nature. Edward had tried to stay strong, Tanya had tried to keep him straight but eventually, he gave in and joined his big brother.

He could remember the night everything seemed to fall apart. After a night out, his parents had come home fighting with one another. It had always been hard hearing the bickering because before this point, he'd never really heard it. It broke his heart to realize his perfect family had some serious cracks forming. The real killer was the fact they were fighting about him and Emmett—they'd just been suspended from school for drugs.

_He decided to sneak out and over to Tanya's. The problem was that she wasn't any happier with him than his mom and dad. She told him it was over, that she wanted him to leave and not come back. She couldn't be with someone who was 'just going to die from a drug overdose.' Edward was in absolute shock. Tanya was always the one there for him. Always. He had heard about a party a few blocks away and decided to pay a visit._

_Between the alcohol he'd just consumed and the weed still in his system, when a girl approached him he took advantage of the opportunity. She was pretty, a girl he recognized from his gym class. Wearing a very short denim skirt and a small pink tank top, the girl left very little to the imagination. At the time he'd had no idea if she actually thought he was her boyfriend in her drunken state or if she knew he wasn't. She'd walked right up to him and kissed him on the mouth. She slipped her tongue in his mouth and he suddenly didn't give a fuck who she thought he was. He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up. With her legs wrapped around him, he looked towards the stairs and went for them._

_It wasn't until they'd gotten into the room and he was pulling her shirt over her head that he realized just how bad of an idea this might have been. He heard banging on a door a few doors down but kept going, thinking nothing of it. A few seconds later that same banging started on theirs and someone yelled out, "Tessa? Are you fucking in there?"_

_Edward ignored it and went for her skirt when he heard her mutter 'shit' against his mouth. He finally pulled away and looked at her before g__lancing over at the door. "Tessa! I _know_ you'__re fucking in there! Open this god__damn door!" He began to worry. The girl looked up at him with scared eyes._

"_Just be quiet. Maybe he'll go away," she pleaded with him._

"_Will he try to hurt you?" Edward asked, noticing just how terrified this girl looked. Even though she'd started this, he hated to see some asshole hurt a girl. Any girl. Even one that was currently trying to cheat on him._

"_I...I don't know...he wasn't supposed to be here tonight. If he doesn't hurt me, he will hurt you"_

"_How big is this guy?"_

"_About two hundred forty pounds. He spars with local MMA fighters. You seriously need to hide. Like now."_

"_I'm not going to take the chance of him coming in here and beating the shit out of you!" He didn't know this girl, he tried to remind himself, but that just wasn't how he was raised. He tried to formulate a plan when he heard the banging again. His mind was so muddled with the drugs and alcohol he realized the two of them were staring at each other in horror...which would have been comical had this not been their last few moments on Earth. That's when he heard a voice. He couldn't be sure if it was who he thought it was, at first._

"_Excuse me!" He listened intently, wondering if that female voice could possibly be her. "I said excuse me, you dumbass! Who the fuck are screaming at like that? My boyfriend is in there. By himself. Waiting for me."_

"_I hear he's in there with my girl. Your boy's fucking another girl, my dear," the man taunted her, trying to piss her off to._

"_Alright, dipshit, here's the thing. My boyfriend is a total dumbass. A total compulsive dumbass. What he's not is a cheating fucking scumbag. Sorry if your girlfriend is. So, why don't you take your overgrown, steroid ass and go find your hoe bag? Oh, and obviously, if you're so damn worried about her cheating on you, she's obviously a total whore."_

_Yup, that was definitely the charming . A few minutes later, the door to the room flew open and Tanya was the only one standing there. Edward and the girl he now knew as Tessa were still on the bed, in shock. Tanya shook her head and looked at the girl, "Get dressed," then she pointed to Edward, "and I'm taking you home. Let's go, you stupid asshole. I should have let him rip you apart. Maybe that would have gotten some of those brain cells of yours working, if they had the shit beat out of them. Tessa got up and put her shirt back on, looking at Tanya slightly offended but gratefully._

"_Um...thank you?" The girl said as if it were a question._

"_I didn't do this for you. Get out of here."_

_The girl left and Tanya guided him downstairs and out to her car. "How the hell did you figure out where I was?"_

"_After you left my house, I felt kind of bad. I wanted to have some fun and went over to the party. Tyler told me you were there and you'd just gone upstairs with some 'horny chick'. When I heard all of the commotion I went up and realized it was probably you in trouble. Like I said, I should have let him knock you around for awhile. You're welcome by the way. Edward, look, I'm sorry about earlier..."_

"_Don't be. You, my parents, everyone...they're all right. I think it's best if we just part ways. You were right."_

"_Yeah...totally...I mean I was going to say that too. Yeah." Edward could tell from her voice that wasn't at all what she wanted. She wanted to kiss and make up. He couldn't let that happen. He knew he didn't love her the way she loved him. It wasn't fair to just pretend like this._

_Instead of reassuring her that this was the right thing to do, he kept his mouth shut and let her drive. When they reached his house, he told her thank you, and gave her an awkward hug. They promised to stay friends and that they'd meet up at the basketball game later that week...just to hang out. That was three months before he met Bella. Two months before he knew just how much money he'd be coming into._

_Tanya had been there for him. Always. Even when he didn't deserve it. In a way, he did love her, but not enough. He had no idea at the time but his annual visit to his aunt and uncles in Forks would change his life forever. That a stubborn brown haired girl from a tiny reservation would turn his life upside down...and he wouldn't be able to let go of her...even if it could kill him._

Isabella Marie Swan drove him completely fucking crazy. While other girls wanted him for his looks, for his money, hell—even his family was a turn on for some girls he'd dated, Bella just loved him for...well he didn't know why Bella loved him. She hated egotistical men. She hated people who threw their money around to get what they wanted. For whatever reason, she loved him. He didn't know why but he knew it was true. Sure it caused them to fight, sure it caused him frustration, but he loved her unconditionally. He had since that first day he'd met her. Tanya, who'd known him his entire life, just simply could not understand why. Bella was everything that Edward had never wanted in a girl. To Tanya's deepest confusion, he was completely fucking hooked.

He'd quit the drugs after the night Tanya had saved his ass from what would possibly have been the beating of a century. He was tired of disappointing everyone, his parents, his little sister, Tanya, and even Emmett decided to take the journey with him. He focused on Alice, on trying to bring the light back to her eyes. It never completely happened, not until two years later when she'd meet Jasper.

Now, he looked at his wife. He needed to get her to understand why after all this time he'd stayed friends with Tanya. Sure she was manipulative. Sure she could be a bitch but even before the money...she had always, always been there for him. Even when he married someone else, lost the baby he was having with someone else, and even was weepy and mopey over the one person he loved more than anyone, Tanya was there for him. He knew what he had to do but would Bella allow it?

He looked at her now, his beautiful yet broken wife. He would give every penny, their big house, his career, his entire world to help rebuild her. To let her be who she was when they'd first met, when they'd been married, when she'd been pregnant. Now, she was needier, more quiet, more frightened. Her defiance with him had always driven him through the roof. He liked to be in control, to be the one to take care of everything. She wanted to be independent. Now, ironically, he'd give his life to give that back to her.

He heard Bella sigh deeply, felt it against his chest as he sat there holding her. "Alright, I'm just going to say it. I know you're going to hate it and possibly me and this could end us even before we try to start again..."

"Bells, I have a story to tell you. It's a long one but I think that maybe I should have told you all of this a long, long time ago but it's all hard for me to talk about. I think it might help you understand." So, he decided to launch into the story from the beginning. Tanya's sixteenth birthday, his grandfather's deaths, his teenage rebellion stage, the almost sex he'd had with Tessa and the beating he'd almost gotten for it. He even told her exactly what happened those nights after they lost the baby that he had spoken to or seen Tanya.

When he was done talking, she asked, "So that's your way of telling me she stays in your life? Is that it?"

"No. I'm done with her, Bella. I'm not going to be friends with her. If I see her I won't act coldly toward her but I won't be friends with her. I told you all of this because I need you to trust me enough to sit down and tell her this face to face. She at least deserves that. She's going to be upset, I can't do this in public...or with you there. Do you trust me?"

The trust question was the million dollar one for them right now. If she didn't trust him to be alone with Tanya, there was no way Tanya wasn't going to try to start something. Bella didn't deserve to be screamed at and he feared that's what would happen if the two girls were in the same room. It also didn't seem fair to Tanya. The least Edward could do was tell her gently, without the drama, that things were without a doubt over.

Bella seemed to be considering this before she took another deep breath and shook her head. "Edward, I can't. I can't know that she isn't going to try anything with you and I'm pretty sure we've both seen what happens when she does. I don't want you to put yourself in that position."

"What if I had someone else with me?"

"Who?"

"Emmett. He's known her as long as I have. He'll be there and you know he'd kick my ass if either of us tried anything. I'll take Emmett with me, we'll sit down and talk."

"Where would this happen? I don't want you to go to her house and I don't want her coming here."

"I don't want her here either. What about my mom and dad's? I'll call her and tell her to meet me there, that we really need to talk, I'll have Emmett there with me. Bella, please understand that I have to do this."

She was searching his face, looking for a reason to argue with him. Finally, she said, "Alright. Why don't we call...actually...I kind of want to see Emmett. Do you think maybe we could see if everyone wants to meet at your parents? I really want to see Ally, too. Besides, everyone should know what's going on. Especially your mom and dad since it's going to happen at their house."

"You sure you're up to seeing that many people? You were kind of overwhelmed at the hospital." Edward said gently, kissing her cheek.

"No," she said with a sad smile, "but I really miss everyone."

"Well, if you want to leave just say the word and we'll leave. I'll send a text to everyone and call mom. I'm sure she won't mind having us over for supper. We didn't do Sunday lunch yesterday. I'm just going to grab my phone and I'll be right back. Do you want your pills?"

"Yeah. If they knock me out I'll have a few hours to sleep them off before dinner time. Grab my phone while you're at it."

After another kiss, he headed for the bedroom and grabbed the two phones and the pill bottle. He came back and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. While he did that, he flipped his phone open and saw that he had a good bit of calls. The hospital psychologist, Kathy, had been the last to call. Before that was Carlisle, Emmett, two from Jacob, and four from Charlie.

"Shit," he muttered to himself before looking over at Bella. She'd heard him and asked what was wrong. "Looks like the word has made it to Charlie. You better call him."

He went to hand her phone to her when he realized it was dead, so he told her and handed her his. He could tell she was scared to tell him but it should have been her from the beginning. She lifted the phone to her ear, waiting for an answer.

Waiting for Charlie to pick up was the longest twenty seconds of her life. When he finally answered, he didn't sound distracted like normal, he sounded pissed. "Edward Cullen, I heard what happened to my daughter and I swear to God if I find out you had any involvement whatsoever I will make sure you are put away for the rest of your miserable life."

It took Bella a minute to react, she was in such shock, "Dad? It's not Edward. It's me. How can you say that? How can you possibly accuse him of this?"

"Bells?" _Now _he sounded confused. "Why are you using his phone?"

"Mine's dead and I don't have my charger here."

"Oh, well, why haven't you called? Why did I find out about this from the Seattle department? I should have been the first..."

"Dad, I know, just listen. I thought they would have found Mike before you would have to find out and I didn't want to worry you..."

"Worry me? Bella! You were beaten and sexually assaulted! Don't tell me not to worry about you! I don't like you living in Seattle, Bells. It's just been one thing after another there. You're going through a divorce with no family around. Why don't you come home?"

"Dad...about that...Edward and I are...well we're going to try...to try to fix things."

"Bella," her dad sighed, "maybe you two just aren't meant to..."

"Dad, stop. Seriously, you have no idea how much he's done for me in just the past twenty-four hours. We're planning to visit his family tonight and sit down to talk with everyone. I really, really miss him, dad."

"I just don't want to see you get hurt again."

"I know and dad?"

"Yeah?"

"He had nothing to do with this."

After they got off the phone, Bella looked at Edward and saw he was sitting there holding her water and pill bottle. "He thinks I did this to you?" Edward asked quietly.

"No, I don't think he really does. He's just angry that no one told him. Edward, he knows you wouldn't hurt me that way."

"This is my fault, though. I vowed to protect you and look how that turned out..."

She got up, careful of her right side, and walked over to him. She knelt in front of him and put her hands on his face, making him look at her. "This was not your fault. This was mine. I never should have invited him back to the house."

"Does Ben know what happened?"

"No. I told Alice not to call him or Angela. I don't want them to blame themselves, either. Angela was sick and Ben just wanted to get her home. That's why I asked Mike to come with me, so Ben could get her home; Ben was the one driving."

"Well, according to my phone, Jacob called. Why don't you let me call my family and then you can call him while I grab a shower."

"Wait," Bella said, eying him suspiciously, "you're okay with me talking to Jake? Even after everything..."

"I don't like it but I'm not going to stop it. I just want to know, have you slept with him since..."

"No, never. I don't feel that way about him. I never have. I know how it must have seemed but I haven't been with anyone other than you, like that. I've kissed guys but I've never gone all the way. I swear to you."

"Tanya was the only one. It happened once."

Bella was surprised by how much relief she felt hearing him say that. There had been other girls before her that he'd told her about from the beginning and she had assumed he'd reverted back to his old ways when they split up. If you could call it that. She used to lay awake at night wondering who he was with, if he'd moved on, if he was happy. She could tell now that he hadn't been...and it was her fault.

After he'd called his family and jumped in the shower, he came out to find Bella awake. He had expected her to be sound asleep. She was on the phone with Jacob and she seemed pretty lucid. Maybe it was just all of the stress that had drained all her energy. She looked at him now and gave him a small smile. "Alright, Jake, I'm going to get a shower. Tell everyone to calm down. I'm going to be fine. Oh, and can you ask Emily to call me? I know she's pretty busy with Lily right now. I just want to talk to her for a few minutes. I miss her."

When they got off the phone he smiled and nodded towards the bathroom. "It's all yours. I don't have anything girly but there's some Dove soap and shampoo. You can use my razor if you need one and I set some towels out for you. I wasn't really expecting company of the female variety."

"That's a good thing in my opinion," she said with a smirk.

He watched her walk into the bathroom after grabbing clothes from her big duffel bag. He should have thought to grab some of her bath stuff from the house. While he berated himself for not thinking of it, he heard a gasp and walked quietly over to the closed bathroom door to listen, worried she would be too sore to shower herself. When he heard her cry, he knocked on the door and asked if he could come in.

When there was no answer, just sobbing, he gently pushed the door open and peered in. The outside of the sliding glass door was a full length mirror. Bella was standing in front of it, wearing her bra and underwear, crying. Her hands were covering her mouth as if trying to hide her sobs. He worried that she would get scared of him again if she saw him so he whispered her name to get her attention. She didn't scream or yell, she just turned to him with a horrified look on her face. _This is the first time she's seen her reflection since it happened._

"Edward," was all she choked out, "I didn't know..."

"Shhh," he whispered as he put his arms around her, "you still look beautiful. My beautiful Bella."

He could understand why she was so shaken up. The whole right side of her face was swollen, including a busted lip. There was a small line of stitches above her eyebrow and another below her lip. There were cuts on her neck, four of them, as if someone's fingernails had raked it. Her arm had stitches just above her elbow and from her collar bone down to her waist were covered in large bruises. While most of them were still a deep purple, they were beginning to turn a strange yellow color. Some of them had cuts over them.

Her legs weren't as bad but she had a large hand print on her hip where he figured the bastard held her down. There were two bruises on her pelvis and he didn't know the extent of the damage Newton had done when he'd entered her but he knew it was enough to be painful for her to sit. The backs of her legs were bruised and the front of them where her shins were also had the yellow colored ones.

It killed him to think how hard the bastard must have hit her to cause this much damage. The two of them liked to include a little BDSM into their sex life but he had never, ever touched her in a way that would leave a mark like this. He knew she didn't bruise easily, she was Bella, she tripped over her own shadow. It must have taken a lot of force to do this to her. Standing there, he thanked God nothing had ruptured.

She was shaking and holding onto him. He could feel tears in his eyes as he rocked her from side to side, telling her how beautiful she looked. Never had he wanted to hurt another human being this much in his entire life, and as a lawyer, he had dealt with a lot of assholes. He never would have guessed he'd ever be standing in this too expensive penthouse, holding his wife's broken body, as the two of them cried for everything they had both lost. He vowed to make everything right again. As right as it could be. The next step was talking to Tanya and ending a friendship he'd been a part of for almost twenty years of his life. As much as he tried to convince himself otherwise, he knew Tanya wasn't going to take this without a fight.

**Are you as excited to see what he says to Tanya as I am? Sadly, I don't totally know what he's going to say but I can't wait to find out! I'm hoping to have another chapter up soon but it might not be tomorrow, Mondays are always craz****y! Hope you enjoyed it! I know there wasn't a lot accomplished in this one but I felt it was necessary to explain the Tanya/Edward relationship a little better and Bella's first trip to a mirror was something that needed to be talked about. The next should**** be a little more dramatic :) Until then, LP xo**


	16. Chapter 16

**I'll keep this short but I want to make a quick shout out to all those who've reviewed! A special thank you to jc types, you know why ;) Cait—keep on rocking—even when we both end up married and old, you'll still be my Valentine!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: He vowed to make everything right again. As right as it could be. The next step was talking to Tanya and ending a friendship he'd been a part of for almost twenty years of his life. As much as he tried to convince himself otherwise, he knew Tanya wasn't going to take this without a fight.**

**Chapter 16**

Bella leaned back against the towel Edward had folded behind her neck and took a deep breath. It felt so good to feel him running his hands through her hair as he lathered her up with shampoo. Two days ago, if someone had asked her what she would be doing on Monday, she would have said searching for a lawyer to help with the divorce. Little did she know, she'd be in her husband's penthouse, beaten and bruised, and he'd be giving her a bath.

Seeing her reflection for the first time had been enough to make bile rise to her throat. She knew it was bad, she could feel that it was bad, but she had never imagined it could be _this bad_. At first, she was hesitant to let him help her bath but when the sobbing stopped, she realized she just wanted to be with him. It had been so long since she'd been able to just be with him and be happy that she almost forgot how great it felt.

She'd been self conscious thinking first how hideous she looked and then what Tanya must look like under all those super tight clothes. She probably didn't have one stretch mark, one drop of cellulite, she was probably toned and perfect. She definitely didn't have bruises that made her look like a cage fighter. When Edward had asked her if she wanted him to stay, she'd told him yes. Even though he was probably repulsed by her body, she was too scared to get completely undressed by herself. _Wow, how sad is that?_

It hadn't been like he'd never seen her naked before, granted it was a good deal of time ago. They had been together for years before getting married. He was with her when she was pregnant. He had seen everything and never acted anything more than a gentleman. Of course, during sex he was a little less than a gentleman but she hadn't minded that at all.

That's when another thought hit her. _I can't be what he's going to need me to be in bed. _She tried to remind herself that he'd gone a year without sex...he probably wasn't going to be too picky for awhile. Could she do it at all? She cringed just thinking about him touching her where she'd so violently been violated. What if she couldn't have sex again...ever?

"What are you thinking about, angel?" Edward asked, kissing just below her ear.

"Nothing," Bella said quietly.

"I know that face. You're thinking of something serious. You're totally planning world domination now, aren't you?" he asked her playfully.

"Yeah. That's it," she laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Really, though, talk to me. What's going through that mind of yours?"

"I...um...what if I...I can't...you know, with you?" Bella figured she wasn't making sense and figured Edward probably noticed that too but then a look of realization crossed his face. "Oh. Oh, no, Bella. Don't worry about that. Don't even think about it. I swear I won't touch you until you're ready. I swear it."

"You're a guy, honey. We both know you're going to need..."

"I need you. Until I can have you we don't even need to think about it." Something didn't sit right with her. This was one of those times when she had to look past those beautiful eyes of his and remind herself that he was indeed a lawyer. He could be lying about everything. Hell, he could have been sleeping with half of Seattle. _It's your fault. You di__d this. You pushed him away from you as if he had the fucking plague. What did you think he was going to do?_

"Bella? You look like you're going to cry...baby..."

"Are you lying to me?" Bella decided to just be blunt about it. She knew her husband too well to think he'd not had any sexual release with a girl in almost a year. There was no way. Judging from the look on his face, she would guess that her suspicions were true. She pushed his hand away. "Dammit, Edward! We're trying to fix this! You said you wanted to fix this! Why are you trying to lie to me? Are you really that stupid? No...I know you're not _that_ stupid!"

"Alright," he said with a sigh, sitting on the floor by the bathtub, "There were two other times..."

"Oh, Edward..." Bella wanted to hit him but couldn't help blaming herself.

"They were just random people," he would meet her gaze.

"When? Who? It wasn't Tanya then?"

"No. I swear to you it wasn't Tanya, I've been trying to stay away from her."

"Then who, Edward?" Bella asked, getting annoyed.

"I was on a business trip about a month ago. Right after the wedding. I didn't mean for it to go as far as it did. I was on the trip with a coworker. Collin wanted to go out and that's when I met her and one thing led to another..."

"Okay. I get it. Who was the other one with?"

"There was a girl about six months ago," he glanced at her before looking back down, Bella knew this wasn't good news, "the guy I'm renting from? It was his daughter..."

"No! Edward! Why would you think that was ever a good idea?" In spite of the situation and his lying, Bella surprised herself by busting out in laughter. "You fucked your landlord's daughter? Please tell me she was of age..."

"Oh, stop, she's my age. I haven't seen her since then."

"Did you use protection at least?" The idea of him getting someone else pregnant made her want to kill something.

"Yes."

"I'm really kind of pissed," Bella said, trying to quit laughing.

"Christ, look at us, Bells. How much more fucked up could we possibly be? Your father thinks I sexually assaulted you, you're laughing because I told you I cheated, and I'm pissed off enough for the first time in my entire life...and career as a lawyer that I want to kill someone."

"First and foremost, dad is just having a hard time with things. I really, really don't think he really believes you'd do this. As for Mike, he's not worth it and me fighting with you isn't really worth it either. I'm not saying if you do it again I won't cut your balls off but I'm tired, Edward. I'm really, really tired and being angry isn't going to make anything better. I swear to God, if you do it again, I will chop your balls off and kill the girl. Do we understand each other?" Bella was dead serious about this last part and his face looked like he knew it.

He reached for her hair again to finish washing it and she let him. "I love you."

"I know," she answered, "but did you... do what you do... with me... with them?"

It took Edward a little bit to answer her, he looked like he was really confused but then a look of recognition hit him, "No. I have never, ever done that with anyone other than you. Believe it or not, the submissive and the dominant have to trust each other equally. I know you, Bells. I know what you can handle. I don't know what anyone else can...this is just between you and me. Was between you and me."

He reached down to help her out of the bath, wrapping a large towel around her. She looked at him confused, "Was?"

"I won't...I can't do that after...I mean...it doesn't feel right," he said, trying to figure out how to explain it to her.

"Oh," Bella said, a little offended. _He doesn't trust me anymore. Not after everything I've put him through._

"What? You're upset about that? After everything with Mike..."

_Oh. _"I like it. Not right now or probably anytime in the near future but maybe someday, ya know?"

"Alright, I'm going to just wait outside...you can get dressed," Edward said quietly.

It amazed her after all this time they could still be this awkward with each other. It wasn't just Edward. She felt the same way. It didn't feel right to be moving this fast. Three days ago she was praying for him to sign the damn divorce papers.

About five o'clock that evening, Edward pulled up in front of his family's home. Jasper was just helping Alice out of the car when they pulled in beside them. Bella stepped out before Edward could even get to her door. Alice waddled over and hugged her. She was whispering something to Bella, who nodded in response before they both looked at him. Alice smiled with tears in her eyes before giving him a hug and whispering, "Don't fuck this up."

He couldn't help but chuckle as he followed them into the house. Esme met them at the door while Carlisle hung back a little. Rosalie also hugged Bella before his mom could get a hold of her. "Where's Em?" Bella asked before they were even finished launching questions at her.

"Oh, um, he's in the living room...he didn't want to scare..."

They watched as Bella walked away before she finished the sentence and headed into the area where the living room was. They all followed and saw Bella stride right over to a surprised Emmett. She wrapped her arms around him and shook her head, "I'm sorry, Em. Really, I just panicked. I feel terrible and I never meant anything by it..."

He hugged her back carefully and kissed her cheek, "No, problem, sis. Forget it happened. Just save me a dance next time we go out and I'll call it even."

Edward now understood why she'd wanted to see Emmett so badly. Bella and his brother had always hit it off. At first, Emmett was a little cautious with her and she seemed a little scared of him. One night in Forks, Bella's old truck had gotten a flat and he couldn't get there to help her. Emmett heard about it from Alice and drove from the Masan's to meet her. It was on a Tuesday, almost midnight, and he'd stood along the highway in the pouring rain, changing her flat tire.

They were staying with his aunt and uncle and when he'd made it back there from Seattle the next morning—he'd been up there to meet with an admissions counselor—Bella was sitting at the breakfast table. She had cooked Emmett French toast and the two were talking like old friends. Since then, Emmett had considered her his little sister and he'd kill anyone who hurt her. Which was something else he needed to talk to Emmett about.

As they all sat down to dinner, everyone seemed to be staring at them awkwardly. He couldn't decide if they were waiting for him and Bella to start arguing or they were just overly happy to have Bella back that they didn't want to chase her away. Finally, in typical Rose fashion, she blurted out, "So are you to back together or what?"

Emmett shot her a look and Bella shot Edward one. He didn't exactly know what to say. They were going to try to fix things but that didn't mean they were back together. To his surprise, Bella cleared her throat, put her fork down and sat up straight.

"Edward and I have decided to try to work on things. We both have been through a lot due to unfortunate...circumstances...and we really just need to take things slowly," she said this nervously, as if she didn't know that it's what he wanted to have her say.

He winked at her, letting her know he agreed. Everyone still stayed quiet throughout dinner which was very, very strange for his tell-me-every-bit-of-your-business type of family. Esme brought out beers, tea, and soda for everyone once the dishes were cleared—he had grown up having only the choice of milk or water with his meals. Unless it was breakfast, then anything but soda and beer.

Bella cleared her throat again, breaking the deafening silence, "I need to say something," once everyone looked at her, she continued. "I have an apology to make to all of you..."

"Bella, sweetie, you don't have..." Esme tried to cut her off but she kept going.

"What I've done over this past year was unforgivable and I know that. I am the one who wanted to end this marriage. I let him down and all of you. My biggest regret is how I acted, as if I were divorcing all of you, that wasn't fair. When Edward Jr. died I thought I was going to right along with him. Edward told me that he felt like he lost his wife and he was right," Bella stopped, wiping away her fresh tears before continuing. "I love you all and consider you my family. I'm so sorry..."

She was crying a lot harder now and he reached over to put an arm around her. As soon as he moved, his entire family followed suit. His mom got to her first this time, followed by Alice and Rosalie. Carlisle put his hand on her shoulder while Emmett and Jasper reassured her that they all still loved her. It was like the dam had finally broken. Everyone was crying...or at least a few pretended they weren't...but he knew better.

They were relieved to finally have their daughter, sister, best friend, and wife back. Everyone had loved her deeply and to Edward's relief, that had never changed. The girls led her away into the living room, probably to cry some more while the guys hung back. Jasper, Emmett, and his father hugged him.

"You lucky son of a bitch. You know you're not going to get another chance with her, right?" Emmett asked, shaking his head.

"I'm not going to need it," Edward said with the certainty of a stubborn mule.

"We'll see about that, man," Jasper put in, "you need to stay the fuck away from Denali. There. All problems solved."

They were back to sitting around the table again drinking beer and relaxing. Edward looked over at Jasper and nodded his head, "That's part of the reason I wanted to see you guys tonight. I need to sit down with Tanya and tell her it's over once and for all."

"You just now decided you need to do this? Holy hell, Edward's finally found the light!" Jasper yelled, only half joking. "Not that I don't full-heartedly feel that this is the best decision you've made in years but how do you plan to do that? She's not going to take it well at all."

"That where I need your help," he said, pointing his beer bottle at his big brother.

"I want nothing to do with her. Rose will have me castrated. I personally have a fondness for my man parts."

"I just need you to be there when I meet with her. I know she's going to try something and to be honest, Bells doesn't trust me alone with her. I don't blame her but I have to do this. So, what do you say? Will you witness this train wreck of a discussion?"

"Then you're done with her? She's out of you fucking life forever?" Emmett asked, as if he didn't believe a single word of it.

"Forever," Edward vowed.

"Yeah, alright, where are you meeting her?" His brother finally relented.

"Dad, that's where you come in, mind if I have her meet us here? I don't want to do this in public but I can't invite her over with Bella there. Plus, Bells will kill me if I go to her house again."

Carlisle, who hadn't said much since the girls left, nodded his head. "Under one condition. If you tell Tanya goodbye, you have to be sure you can deal with that."

"Dad!" Emmett gasped, "She's a terrible person! Why would..."

"She's not a terrible person. I don't agree with what she's done or the role she's played in your marriage but she's been a friend of yours since I can remember," he lowered his voice, "and you know damn well Bella isn't going to be able to cut Jake out of her life that easily. Are you going to be able to deal with that?"

"Dad, I don't have another choice. Emmett's right, I'm not going to get another chance at this. If I lose her again, I lose her for good."

"Well, as long as you know what you're doing, it's fine with me. I'll let your mom know. Maybe she can take Bella out for awhile that day. She's misses her."

He was just about to bring up the topic of them getting counseling when Esme came in. "Sorry to interrupt but I think Bella needs to get some rest. She's looking a little faint..."

Edward got up quickly, leaving his beer half full and took off into the living room. He didn't know why he'd just panicked. She was sitting there talking with Rose and Ally but he could tell she was tired. The girls looked up at him like he had two heads. "Sorry, I just...wanted to...never mind. Bella, you ready to head home, angel?"

"Yeah. I need to get my car charger. Would you mind stopping?"

Bella took a deep breath as they pulled up outside of the large, white brick house. She loved the place, as much as she complained that it was too big, she knew she'd never be able to part with it. It was hard seeing the broken bay window she loved so much, true to his word, Edward must have had Emmett put a tarp over it. The tarp was blue and Bella realized her house had just as much a black and blue eye as she did. She walked quickly into the house, past the bloody step, she just had to pretend nothing happened. It was hard when they got in there.

The police had obviously come in to collect evidence or do whatever it was that policeman did at a crime scene. You'd think she'd know—she was a police chief's daughter. Walking right upstairs, she found her charger and plugged her phone in while she gathered a few extra things. Edward was out on the porch, calling to set up a time with Tanya. As much as she wanted to run down and eavesdrop, she knew she had to let him have this.

As she packed a few more bags, she thought about the one person who she'd turn to besides Edward. Jacob had been her lifeline for so long that she couldn't imagine doing what Edward was doing now. She kept reminding herself that Tanya wasn't Jake that Edward had his whole family, but it wasn't stopping the guilt from eating away at her. Edward did have his whole family but that was it—his whole, overbearing, in-your-business family. She could understand why he'd needed someone to talk to. The poor guy had even lost Jasper to his little sister.

Bella tried to imagine what life would have been like for them had their son been born. He would be a year old. Would she be able to handle Tanya being around him? Bella knew Tanya had approached Edward before they'd split up. She knew that once in awhile, he'd get calls from her. Bella wasn't stupid and Edward knew it. Just like she'd get calls from Jake at strange hours of the night, he'd get calls from Tanya. She could remember one major fight they'd had right after their wedding when Tanya had called at two in the morning and Edward had taken it upon himself to go pick her up from a bar.

Bella had been so angry that she'd gotten into the car with him just for the chance to rip Tanya a new one. The two girls had never gotten along and after that fight, Edward no longer called or answered his phone when it was her...at least before they had started the divorce process. For all Bella knew, Tanya could be number one on his speed dial right now. She figured her phone had charged enough to turn it on, so she grabbed it and saw she had almost twenty missed calls; her inbox was full of texts.

She just deleted all the texts, not having the patience to read and respond to them all—she couldn't stand texting with the damn thing. Instead, she started going through her voicemails. There were a bunch from Charlie, they started out angry and turned to desperate. Then Jake's. Then her mom, who was just calling to check in. Two each from Sam and Emily. One from Leah. A few from Edward's family. It was the second to last that caught her attention...the Seattle Police Department.

"Hello, this message is for Isabella Cullen. We have your keys to give back to you and we would like to get a statement from you. We need to do so as soon as possible since yesterday would have been ideal but you weren't very lucid because of the pain killers. If you could give us a call back it would be greatly appreciated."

Bella already knew she didn't like this guy. She didn't know what it was or what he did. She just got that vibe that screamed, 'I'm a cop so I'm always right'. Usually, due to her father's profession, she'd always been very considerate of them but this guy really got under her skin. When she was in the hospital, they'd tried to interview her and ended up twisting her words. By the time they were done, she felt like _she_ was the bad guy. She made a mental note to tell Charlie about this.

She went downstairs and stood at the front door, while it killed her to be standing in that spot of bad memories, she really didn't want to interrupt Edward. She had just reached for the knob when the door opened, making her jump. "Tanya, I'll see you tomorrow. I have to go. Bye."

"So...how'd it go?" Bella asked curiously.

"Not too bad. I think she was just surprised I was calling at first. It's tomorrow I'm worried about. She's really not going to take this well. Dad's going to get mom to take you out for a little while so that you won't be alone while I talk to her."

"I think I can handle the suspense," Bella said flatly before adding, "I'll be fine."

"You don't want to go with her? It's not a big deal but are your sure you're going to be okay alone?"

"Edward, you have to go to work tomorrow. If I'm fine at the apartment all day by myself, I'm sure I'll be fine at home by myself for an hour more."

"I can take off again tomorrow..."

"You can't babysit me for the rest of our lives, okay? I'm going to be fine. Tell your mom I can handle things tomorrow, you go deal with crazy bitch, and I'll be waiting for you when you get back."

"If you're sure," Edward said, obviously still not convinced.

"I'm sure. We also need to stop down at the police station. They need a statement from me and have the other set of house keys to give back," she looked at him before asking, "do you think I need a lawyer?"

"No. At least, you shouldn't. Did you hurt him enough that if caught he could try to turn it around on you? Was there any destruction to his property; car, house, anything like that?"

"No. Everything happened here. I did scratch him a bit but nothing serious...they're probably already healed and I'm sure Jasper Cat could have done better."

At the station, Bella sat at a desk with a female officer she'd never met before. The woman was a lot friendlier than the guy she'd spoken to before. Edward was sitting near the front desk chatting with the man she recognized to be the district attorney. He glanced over at her once in awhile, making sure she was okay.

"So, he had taken off on foot by the time your mother-in-law arrived on the scene?"

"Yeah."

"So, can I ask you something personal?"

"Officer, with all due respect, I just shared my rape story with you. We aren't able to get much more personal."

"Very true Isabella, but this is about your marriage."

"What about it?" Bella asked peering at her.

"Is it true that the two of you are going through a divorce?"

"Yes...no...not anymore. We were at the time but we're trying to work things out. I've been staying with him until we can get the house back together. I'm guessing he'll move back in with me."

"Where was Mr. Cullen the night Mr. Newton attacked you?"

"I don't know. I think he was at the bar and then with...he was with someone else that night. Why?"

"Well, we've seen husbands work with other people during a divorce to 'get rid of the problem'. Isabella, I'm going to be honest with you, your husband is worth a lot of money. There were no prenuptial agreements made and he would have lost a ton of money if this divorce went through..."

"Stop. Right there. I don't want to hear this ever again from anyone. Do you understand me? He had nothing to do with this. Now, I've told you the entire story, if you'll excuse me I've had enough for one day. I'd like my _husband_ to take me home now. Well, he's at it, how about you people get off your ass and look for Mike Newton...the man who violated me and left me to die."

Bella grabbed the car keys off the small desk and strode over to Edward. She put on a fake smile, knowing how important it was to Edward's career to impress the D.A. As she approached, Edward pulled her towards him and said, "District Attorney, Riley Biers, this is my wife, Bella Swan. Bella, this is Riley Biers, the D.A."

They shook hands politely before saying their goodbyes. Halfway to the car, Bella looked up at him, "How well do you know Mr. Biers?"

"Pretty well. We worked together when I was first hired by Trent. Why?"

"I think it's a good thing you have a friend like that...you might be the one who ends up needing a lawyer."

It was almost ten o'clock until they'd gotten home. She had told him what the officer had implied during their discussion. He shrugged it off, explaining that he could understand why they would be looking into him—even though it really pissed him off. He knew most of the guys down there. "So, I think it's time to get some rest. Are you really going to be okay if I go into work tomorrow? It's okay if you want me to stay. Rose won't mind..."

"Edward, I think it's you that won't be okay _leaving me_ at home. Nothing is going to happen to me. Mike doesn't even know where you live."

Bella was right, Edward knew leaving out the front door tomorrow would be a very hard thing to do. Newton also didn't know where he lived, she was right about that, too. "Alright, alright, I'll go but you call if you need me and I'll be here."

"Deal. Can we get some sleep now? I kind of feel like the walking dead," Bella yawned.

This wasn't like last night, she wasn't crying or afraid. She could totally handle herself tonight, she just looked exhausted. He realized halfway to the bedroom that he didn't know if she would want them to sleep in the same bed. When he got into the room, he went over and grabbed an extra pillow out of the closet, as well as a blanket.

Bella watched him before raising an eyebrow, "Whatcha doin?"

"I...um...I didn't know...I think maybe I shouldn't..."

"Oh, alright," Bella said quietly, looking down at the bed.

He was surprised how awkward things like this could be with her. Not wanting to overwhelm her or go to fast, he figured it was probably best if they actually tried to slow things down. They couldn't go back to how they were before in just a couple of days. When he saw that she wasn't arguing, he headed out to the couch.

Looking up at the ceiling fan, Edward thought about leaving her alone. Work had always been the second most important thing, after Bella of course, but he still never missed. He began to wonder if maybe he should consider lightening his caseload so he could be here more. Rose would be happy...she'd been telling him that he was going to burn himself out. If it weren't for the three clients he had on tomorrow, he wouldn't be going in at all.

After seeing the clock, he realized he'd been laying there awake for two hours and he seriously needed to get some fucking sleep. He'd just spread out on the pullout bed and began to drift off when he heard the tiny noise of the bedroom door opening and closing. A second later he felt the bed take the weight of someone else.

Quietly, Bella slid into him as close as she could, probably thinking he was asleep. She was shaking a little and he could feel that her cheeks were wet from where the one rested on his bare bicep. Pretending to still be asleep, knowing she'd never admit she'd given in like this, he kept his eyes closed and pulled her towards him. When her breathing became normal and the tremors stopped, he fell into a peaceful sleep.

**So, when I started writing this chapter I thought I could shove the Tanya discussion in but it's already pretty long. I am already working on the other half of this chapter so it won't be long (hopefully) until it's published. I hope this chapter answered some of your questions. Anything to add just review or p/m me. I'll love either one :)**

**Will Edward be able to leave her tomorrow? Will Tanya try to commit a murder? Tune in next time :) LP xo**


	17. Chapter 17

**Here it is the chapter that has been talked about for awhile now. I hope I don't disappoint anyone...or everyone (hides behind her Edward Cullen blanket). I also hope this clears up some questions that have been asked through reviews and private messages...if I haven't gotten back to you, I haven't forgotten I promise! I will respond. You guys freaking own me! Helen, I haven't forgotten about you, I swear! Cait, I love ya! Here it is...don't try to kill me :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: Quietly, Bella slid into him as close as she could, probably thinking he was asleep. She was shaking a little and he could feel that her cheeks were wet from where the one rested on his bare bicep. Pretending to still be asleep, knowing she'd never admit she'd given in like this, he kept his eyes closed and pulled her towards him. When her breathing became normal and the tremors stopped, he fell into a peaceful sleep.**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Chapter 17**

"So the bastard actually showed up last night and asked if he could stay for dinner! For dinner! I have a restraining order on the jackass! How dumb can he be?" Edward listened as his first client of the day was ranting as if he was her fucking psychiatrist. He wasn't a psychiatrist, he was a lawyer, and right now he really didn't give a shit about this. Since he and Bella had been dealing with a divorce of their own, he'd started picking up divorce cases. This one dealt with the crazy bitch sitting in front of him and her dumb husband. He'd never heard of a man as fucking idiotic as the woman's soon-to-be ex-husband, though he couldn't blame him, he'd been married to this psycho for ten years.

"Did you let him in?" Edward asked, sounding more annoyed than he should. He tried to remember he was being paid by the hour—he should just let her keep squawking.

"No! I called the police and..."

He zone out, he would have all the police records available to him and was tired of this woman's bitchfest. His thoughts shifted to Bella. That morning when he had woken up, she was opening the bedroom door and he suspected she didn't want him to know she'd slept beside him. He didn't push it. When he'd left, she looked like a scared kitten. Now, he had his phone on his lap, checking for it to light up but it seemed that everyone else but her was demanding his attention.

"Mr. Cullen?" His secretary, Natalia, called to him from the door. His client stopped talking for ten seconds before looking to see who interrupted her. Natalia was a year younger than him and he wasn't going to lie—she could be a swimsuit model. The annoyed client looked from her to his left ring finger before shooting him a you-cheating-bastard look. _Fucking bitch. _He would never sleep with her. She'd come on to him the first day and he'd made sure she understood...he had Rose talk to her.

"What's up, Nat?" He asked, happy for the distraction.

"Well, your two o'clock canceled but your four o'clock wants to come earlier and one of you clients needed an "immediate," she said it with air quotes, "appointment so I penciled them in over your lunch break figuring you could take them at twelve and have a break before your four o'clock comes in at your two."

"Okay, just write it up. I'm never going to remember all that."

"No problem. Oh, and Mr. Hale wants to talk to you and Mrs. Cullen is looking for you—not yours but your brother's."

"Alright, let Mr. Hale know I'm with a client and ask Rose if she wants to get lunch together. Tell her when it was moved to...and then let me know."

Natalia rolled her eyes, "No problem, Mr. Cullen."

As soon as she left, Mrs. Crazy Bitch looked at him with a sly smile before launching into the rest of her story. He sighed, sitting back in his seat, just in time for his office phone to ring. He hit the button to send it out to Natalia and when it seemed like she'd finally quit complaining, he launched into details about the upcoming hearing.

When his next client finally left, Rose was standing in the door and he made a show of banging his head against his desk. "That bad?" His sister-in-law smirked.

"The husband_ has to be_ a bonehead, he married _her_."

"Come on, lunchtime, Mr. Cullen."

"I have to see who called for me," Edward said, standing up.

"Natalia said it was my dad. I don't know what he wants though. He hasn't mentioned anything. Nat asked me if I knew."

"So how's she doing?" Rose asked when they were seated outside at a small cafe.

"Better than I'd expected. I definitely want us to go to some type of counseling. We should have done this a year ago. She's been having panic attacks and I'm scared of leaving her alone. I swear to God, Rose, if I ever come face to face with Newton..."

"That's kind of what I wanted to talk about. You need to talk to Em. He's angry. I mean, like, really angry. We got into a fight last night because of it..."

"Did he hurt you?" Edward asked, completely shocked.

"No, no, he went out after we got home from your mom and dad's. He got home pretty late and I flipped and we fought and he finally admitted to where he was. He was out, driving around, looking for Newton. Edward, he wants to have a baby. We've been talking about it and I think I want that too but I'm worried Em's going to end up in jail because he's going to kill the man if he finds him."

"I'd love to kill the guy," he said, deadpan. Rose shot him a lethal glare and he shook his head, "Although, if something happens to me, who will take care of Bells? Not a chance I'm willing to take again. I highly doubt he'll kill him but I'll talk to him if it'll make you feel better."

"Thanks," she said with a smile. "Now, how are you holding up?"

"Things are just really awkward with us right now. I feel like we're moving too fast but I've missed her and just want to move on."

"Are you having sex?"

"Way to have tact, Rose," Edward said with a laugh.

"Well, I'm just wondering. I mean she's been through a serious sexual trauma. I just don't want to see you hurt her because you can't control..."

"Okay, stop. First and foremost, I spend every waking minute thinking about my wife. Second, I really need to get her to trust me again. I've only been with three people since all this went down and I've told her about all of them. You don't need to worry about that."

"Well, we'll see tonight when Tanya tries whatever it is she's going to try. You know it'll be something."

After calling Esme and making plans with her for the evening, something Bella decided was a good idea, she looked for something to eat for lunch. She wasn't too surprised to find nothing but cold pizza and eggs in the refrigerator. The guy didn't even have anything to drink. She debated whether or not to run out to the store. She had always been independent and hated that she was pathetic enough to be afraid to go to the store by herself.

After a half hour of staring at the door, she grabbed her fully charged cell phone, threw on her oversized sunglasses, and hiked the collar of her coat up. She made sure most of her bruises were covered, she didn't want to make anyone sick from looking at her. The bruises were now turning into a strange yellow color. She looked terrible.

While in the elevator, Bella fought with herself. She could go back to the sparse penthouse and hide until Edward came home or she could take a risk and go grab something to eat. The large building the penthouse was in sat on a pretty populated street lined with small shops and restaurants. It was nice...charming...and she could see the building where Edward worked. She wondered if he'd be upset she'd gone out on her own. He probably would be. He was always a bit overprotective. It did bother her that Mike Newton was still out there, though.

By the time she'd reached the small grocery store, Bella's head was spinning with the idea of Mike finding her there. She reached a shaking hand out to grab a box of noodles when someone bumped into her. It wasn't hard and he muttered that he was sorry. The issue was, he had blonde hair. Bella immediately freaked. Until she got to the front register, she could feel tremors run through her body and her breathing pick up.

_Please don't let me __have a nervous breakdown in the middle of this sweet little store. _Grabbing her bag and paying, Bella threw the door open and walked out. She tried to show confidence that she could take what was thrown at her. She went directly back and into the penthouse. Slamming the door, she locked the deadbolt, and slid down to the floor. She felt like her heart was racing a million miles a minute. Calming herself down, Bella went to find her pills but there was no such luck. She checked the bathroom, the kitchen, the bedroom, everywhere she could think of. All of the walking had really made her sore.

Now, her adrenaline was still pumping and she had tears of frustration falling. She was so scared and in so much pain. All she wanted was Edward but it was at least another two hours until he got home and she refused to call him.

"Ah, Edward, come in. I trust things are going well with your wife. How is she doing?"

"She's alright. A bit shaken up but she's safe."

"Good, good. I wanted to talk to you about next weekend. I was wondering if you and Collin could handle a case together, again? I know you get along well but it's going to be in Chicago and the person you two need to meet with is going to need you there from Friday night to Sunday night. Everything will be paid for: food, travel, hotel, everything."

Edward didn't know what to say. He'd never turned down something like this. He knew that Collin and himself were two of the only lawyers that were requested specifically from this firm. This potential client could be worth a fortune. The problem was, there was no way in hell he could leave Bella for that long right now. "Are wives able to go?"

"Well, yes, but...Bella isn't exactly...stable right now. We just don't want her to become distressed."

Edward wanted to punch this guy in the face. He wasn't worried about Bella. He was worried about not scaring his clients away. Remembering how she handled things with Riley, the District Attorney, even after that cop really upset her, he knew she would be fine. It's not like she'd be meeting his clients anyway. She'd be waiting for him back at the hotel.

"Look, Mr. Hale, I know I've never backed out on a trip but I really, really need to think about things. I'm going to have to have someone stay with Bella. The man who did this to her hasn't been caught yet."

Edward could tell Trent had been upset but he'd said he understood and told him to tell Bella he said hi. He would just have to talk to her about it, see how she felt. If she was alright with it then he could always see if she could stay with his parents or with one of his siblings. Right now, though, he needed to concentrate on the other big talk he needed to have.

It was just after three o'clock. Natalia had rearranged his schedule that morning so he fit the last minute call in over his regular lunch. He took a half hour with Rose and made it back for his two o'clock. After about an hour of going over paper work, he'd gone to talk to Trent. His head was spinning but he was growing more and more anxious to get back to his wife. When he walked into the reception area of his own office, Natalia gave him a sympathetic smile, she'd seen the whirlwind of a day he'd just had.

"You're finally finished with today's schedule, Mr. Cullen. If you don't mind my saying, you look like you've practically pulled that unruly hair out of your scalp today. Perhaps you should call it a day?" She had worked for him for awhile and she knew him well. She also wasn't afraid to be honest with him and that's what he liked about her.

He had packed up and left early. It was almost four by the time he'd made his way to the penthouse. When he'd gotten there, she was nowhere in the kitchen but a pot of water was boiling away. He let it there and headed for the bedroom. Bella was attempting to use some tan liquid stuff—some type of makeup—to cover up her bruises.

"Hey," he said softly, not wanting to scare her.

"Oh, hi," she said, wiping at her eyes.

"What's wrong, angel? Did everything go okay? Were you cooking dinner?"

"It's lunch."

"It's four o'clock. You haven't eaten lunch yet?" Edward began to worry. He hadn't made them anything for breakfast. _Has she not eaten in almost twenty-hours?_

She told him about her day. Going to the store, having her little break down, even calling and setting things up with his mom. "I wanted to eat but it hurt too much and all I wanted to do is sleep and I couldn't find my pills."

He reached for her as she began to cry again. "You're alright, angel. Did you find the pills?"

"Yeah but by then I thought about it and it's not good for me to take them whenever."

"You're in pain. They're pain pills."

"It's not just my body. That's not where the pain is," Bella whispered, as if she were ashamed.

"Alright, come on. I'm going to finish whatever it is you were attempting to cook, we'll have dinner, and before we leave I'm going to call Kathy. I think we need to look into getting you something to help with _that_ type of pain."

He finally called for an appointment with the counselor, something that should have been done a year ago. He had made them separate appointments. If they wanted to do this together later on they could but he didn't think he could handle that right now. Hearing Bella talk about the baby would make things worse on him. He needed time to get things off his chest that she probably didn't want to hear either—like how every night when he'd go to sleep, he remembered how it felt to hold his dead son.

Of course there was the Tanya issue and Bella didn't need to keep reliving that one either. As far as he was concerned, after tonight, Tanya Denali was out of his life for good. His subconscious was rolling his eyes. Even he knew better.

After Esme had picked Bella up, he headed to his parent's. Emmett wasn't there yet but his father said he wanted to talk to him. "Have you called about counseling? I really think you two should do it if only Bella's sake."

"Yeah, I made appointments. Bella is going tomorrow and I'll go the next day. I think she's going to need something for anxiety. Panic attacks aren't uncommon with her anymore."

"Any news on Newton?"

"Nope. I just don't understand how nobody's found him yet..."

"They'll get him, Edward. Until then, Bella's just going to need a safe place to go."

"I wanted to talk to you about that, actually. I might be going away for a business trip and I might need somewhere for her to stay..."

"Absolutely. Whatever you two need," Carlisle stopped him before he could finish.

"Thanks, dad."

"Anytime. Now, to deal with Tanya."

"Yeah, I have no idea what to expect," Edward replied, running a hand through his hair.

"Edward, I support you and Bella. You know that. I love her like she's a daughter. I'm going to say one thing about this whole Tanya ordeal. She's been there for you. You know that. I don't think what she did was right. She knew you were married. She didn't stop you from doing what you did. All I'm asking is for you to do this respectfully. You are no more right than she is and don't tell me she'd only doing all of this for money. In her own very sick and very twisted way...she does love. You need to cut ties with her but don't treat her too terribly when you do it. You're both totally in the wrong. Don't act high and mighty."

"I get it. I do. If she threatens to go after Bella though, I'm not going to go easy on her."

"If she threatens Bella, I'll tell her off myself."

"I'll go as easy on her as I can. I see what you're saying..."

"Edward! Let's do this!" Emmett yelled, coming down the hallway to the living room.

"I've gotta be at the hospital in ten minutes. I'll see you guys later. Edward, let me know how things go."

"You ready for this, little bro?" Emmett asked with a smirk.

Edward went to answer when he heard footsteps coming down the hall. When Tanya rounded the corner and came into the living room, she walked right over and hugged him. He just stood there, not hugging her, until she stepped away and said hello to Emmett.

"So, what's up? Is everything alright?" Tanya asked, looking at him nervously.

"Why don't we sit down."

When they were seated he took a deep breath and began. "You need to know that this...whatever this is between us...it needs to end. For good. I don't just mean the hook ups or visits, I mean, don't call. Don't approach me..."

"Are you kidding? Edward..." she tried to argue, cutting him off.

"I'm not kidding. Tanya, Bella and I are back together. I can't see you anymore."

"You can't even talk to me?"

"No. It's done. I've let a lot of things happen that I regret..."

"You wouldn't have regret them if it wasn't for the fact that you're with her again! When are you going to get that you two aren't meant to be together? When? She didn't give a shit about you after your son died. I was at the funeral! She wouldn't even stand beside you or the casket! You have no idea how badly I wanted to stand beside you—just so you wouldn't be alone! Yeah, I got you to sleep with me, but you were so unhappy with her! You were so unhappy with life because of her!"

"Tanya, you have no idea what either Bella nor I went through. You can't know that pain unless, God forbid, you lose a child. I'm trying to get my marriage put back together..."

"You're cutting me out of your life completely? After everything I've done for you. I was there, Edward! For everything!"

"I need you to be there for me again, Tanya. I need you to back off and let me be happy. I'm asking you nicely to just walk away from this. I love her, Tanya. Please, just let me go. Find someone you can love who will return that. You deserve that. If this is about money..."

"How dare you," Tanya whispered harshly. Edward immediately knew he'd said the wrong thing. "Don't even fucking start with me about money. You were handed what you have. I work hard for what I have. I don't want your damn money."

"Tanya..."

"No. You listen to me for once, Edward Anthony Cullen. Bella _Swan_ doesn't love you. She's scared and vulnerable. I don't blame her. Nothing like that...it should never have happened. I don't care who she is to me, I would never wish something like that on anybody. She wanted a divorce from you three days ago. Now that she's scared she's came running back to you. It's not going to change anything, Edward. It's not. It's going to go back to the way it was. Get. Over. Her."

Edward was not getting it into her head so he tried another tactic. "If that's true then so be it. Doesn't it kill you that I love someone who completely hates me more than I love you?"

She looked like she'd been slapped, "You know Edward, one of these days something is going to happen and you're going to need someone strong enough to pick you back up. Bella Swan is not that girl. You act like I'm the only one that calls. I'm not and you know it. I feel sorry for you. I hope you two have a wonderful life together. When she fucks that cute boy from poor-ass Forks, don't come back to me, Edward. She can have you."

Before he could respond, she glanced over at Emmett and left. He was in shock. He didn't know what he had expected. A huge fight? A physical attack? A murder? This wasn't like her.

"Well, that was...interesting..."

"Have fun with him, Bella. He's just going to do again!" Edward's heart stopped when he heard yelling from the front of the house. Both guys took off running. They found Edward's ex and his wife sizing each other up, his mother looking back and forth between them.

"Oh, please, just because he slept with you? The only thing I have to worry about is the chance he's gotten some disease from you!"

"At least he's getting some from me! He had a lot of pent up frustration and we both know just how much he likes it rough," Tanya smirked.

There it was. The one thing Bella could never forgive him for. What they did in bed was between him and his wife. Bella loved what they did but he could tell she didn't want others to know. Tanya didn't know—he'd mentioned as a joke something about a submissive. Tanya had no idea what she'd just actually implied...and how much it was true. Bella had no idea how much Tanya didn't know. He stepped towards Bella in case he needed to break them up.

"Tanya, you are a lonely bitch who is never going to find someone because you keep fucking up the relationships that you do have. I will tell you that I love him more than you could ever possibly fathom. Go ahead and keep lying to yourself. Tell yourself he's going to end up with you. Here's the deal, bitch. He is mine. He chose me. You're just the girl he fucks when he can't get what he really wants from me. So when you're all by yourself at night I want you to think of something. Think of me lying in his arms while our babies sleep down the hall in our big expensive house. He's living your little fantasy with me and you hate it. Get out, Tanya. Don't fucking come back."

Tanya was shocked...and Edward could tell she was hurt. Now, she looked over at him, as if wanting him to stand up for her. He shook his head, regretting what he had to say because she already looked like she was suicidal. "It's always been her, Tan. It'll always be her. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well, you will be. Goodbye, Edward."

He watched her walk away, not knowing how to feel about it. He hadn't wanted this to happen, not this way. Now it was Bella's turn to face him. "Nothing I said was a lie and you have some serious fucking explaining to do..."

"Bella, I..."

"Not now. Not tonight. I'll call you tomorrow. I need time alone," she said it firmly but quietly before striding right past him and to the stairs leading to the bedrooms.

"Edward, I'm going to pretend I didn't hear any of that because I'm your mother and I didn't want to know over half of that conversation. Go home. I'll make sure she's okay. You two have way too much to deal with right now and I don't know if living together like before is such a great idea. She's safe here, Edward."

"Mike's still..."

"No. She's safe. Go home and let her calm down. I love you but if you don't do what I ask, I'm going to be highly irritated. I'm already pissed off at you for sleeping with Tanya. You do have a lot of explaining to do." She took a deep breath and walked over to him, giving him a tight hug. "I know things look bad right now but Bella still loves you. What she said to Tanya, according to her was all true. She still wants to give you everything you've wanted in life but you need to prove to her that it's what you still want."

**What do you think? Were you happy? Disappo****inted? Don't really care? Think this is the end of Tanya? Is it possible for Edward and Bella to move forward? It may be a couple days until another chapter...my life needs to be about my fourth graders over the next couple of days...we've had some pretty ****tragic events happen and the kids really need my attention. Review, review, review! It'll get me through!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Thanks to my dedicated reviewers and readers! I love you guys! Also, thanks to Cait for being an awesome Beta! I only have a warning to give...about halfway-ish through there is a scene of violence involving Bella and Mike. **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "I know things look bad right now but Bella still loves you. What she said to Tanya, according to her was all true. She still wants to give you everything you've wanted in life but you need to prove to her that it's what you still want."**

**Chapter 18**

Edward walked into his apartment,alone, and slammed the door. As much as he loved his wife, he was frustrated. Before saying goodbye to Emmett, and telling him that it wasn't worth a life in prison to murder Newton, his mom apologized for bringing Bella back. It wasn't that she had brought her to the house, knowing Tanya was going to be there, but the fact that Bella had _wanted _her to. She'd talked Esme into it.

_The one thing I needed her to give me. The one fucking thing and she couldn't even let me have that._ He hadn't made a big deal about her still talking to Jake but if he had, if he'd made her say goodbye to her best friend, Edward knew she at least would have deserved to tell him gently. As much as he couldn't stand Jacob, he'd allow her that time to get closure. Now, he was certain there was going to be problems. Tanya had been leaving, on her own. After the little face-off the girls just had, he knew Tanya wasn't saying he would be sorry for saying goodbye to her because he'd miss her. No, she was declaring war.

_Bella deserves what she gets. She knew Tanya was going to be there. She wanted to start something with her tonight. _He still couldn't get over the fact that Emmett had stayed silent the whole time. It was very unlike Emmett. In fact, the Emmett thing to do would have been to call Jasper during the girls' confrontation and tell him there was about to be a girl fight.

He looked at the clock, eight fifteen. Wanting a distraction, he decided to call Angela and Ben. Maybe one of them could tell him where Mike might be. He would keep his promise to Bella and not say what happened. When reaching for his phone, he noticed Bella's pain pills were still sitting on the counter. Cursing under his breath, he sent his mom a text, "Does she need pain pills?"

A few seconds later, she replied back, "I think she's alright. I asked her how she was feeling and she said fine. She and Emmett are watching some old movie on tv. Rose is here. I think we're all just going to hang out tonight. She's fine. I'm sure Carlisle can bring her some if it becomes an issue. Love you. Get some rest."

Yeah, rest, like he could rest right now. He called Angela first. "Hello?" she asked cautiously, he knew she didn't have his number.

"Angela?"

"Yeah?"

"Hey, this is Edward Cullen. Bella's husband," Edward figured it was okay to introduce himself that way—he was wrong.

"What the hell do you want?"

Edward decided to just cut to the chase. "I was just wondering if you'd seen Mike Newton around lately."

"No but I still wouldn't tell you. What? Do you want me to tell you so you can go beat him up? Not going to happen. He's better for her than you will ever be!" Then, she hung up on him.

_That went fantastically. _He tried Ben next, who was much more friendly than his girlfriend. "Oh, hey, man. What's up?"

"Wondering if you've seen Mike Newton around lately."

"Nah. I called him to see if he could help me move some furniture yesterday but he didn't answer. Today I got a text saying he was visiting family."

"Do you know where?"

"No. His parents moved to Vancouver awhile ago. He might be up there. Can I ask why? I mean, he's a good friend of mine and I know Bella's your wife but..."

"Ben, I'm not going to try to break them up. I don't really think Bella is that interested anyway. It's strictly a professional situation. Could you give me his number?"

There was a long pause before Ben began again. "I really don't think I should give out his number. You understand, right? Shit, man, is he in some sort of trouble?"

Ben knew he was a lawyer. "I can't really discuss it. Thanks for you help, Ben. I'll talk to you later."

He hadn't seen his friend Tyler in a long time so he drove over to his house. He could visit an old friend and grill him on Newton. They sat down in his finished basement in front of the big screen. Tyler knew immediately that something wasn't right. "What's going on?"

Edward debated on how much to tell Tyler. His one confidante away from his family had been Tanya and now that she was out of the picture, he really needed someone to talk to. Tyler was even away from the situation. He needed a different point of view. So he told him everything. The mistakes he'd made, the mistakes Bella made, Bella's sexual assault, the showdown that just happened, his and Bella's sexual habits, how Tanya had twisted his words and didn't realize how much what she said was true, Bella refusing to talk to him tonight, but after all he still loved her. Now, he couldn't find Mike Newton.

Tyler stared at him for a few minutes and Edward let him. It was a lot to take in. "Fuck. No wonder your sorry ass hasn't been around in awhile. If you're asking for relationship advice, I'm the wrong guy. Notice the single bachelor pad feel? Aside from the cheating on both of your parts, I think you've made bigger mistakes in trying to tear each other down. It's good you are getting counseling because you really both fucking need it.

"The Tanya deal sucks and your mom is probably right. You two are moving way too fast. How do you know she won't just leave you again? Let you build her back up just so that she can tear you down. I don't know Bella that well but I do know you and Tanya. She's a total bitch but for whatever reason she loves you...well, you and your money. She's not going to give up this easily.

"As for your...um...sexual relationship with Bella, she needs to trust you. Which won't be easy for her but that's how it is. Listen to me, if she doesn't trust you, this isn't going to work. You need a clean slate, start over."

"You're preaching to the choir, Ty," Edward said, pulling at his hair for the thousandth time that day.

"Just be honest with her. Hey, maybe if you tell her every detail about you and the other girls it won't make what happened with Tanya look as bad."

Edward looked at his friend with a what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-you look. "That is the dumbest thing I've heard all day and I've had a couple pretty dumb clients."

"You're the dumb one. I'm single for a reason. If this doesn't work out for you, you could always try being single...it works for me." Edward rolled his eyes and looked at the tv, pretending to be interested in the hockey game Tyler was watching. Pulling his phone out he sent his mom another text. "Is she ok?"

"Yes," was the only reply he got back.

Bella sat beside Emmett on the large wrap around couch in the living room. They had watched a few old movies and as the latest one end, Bella felt herself growing tired. "Call it a night, sis?" Emmett asked, glancing over at her.

"Yeah. I'm just going to find something of Edward's to wear to bed and take a quick shower," she stood up, wincing.

"You alright, Bella?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, just sore from sitting for so long. I'm fine," she lied. She hadn't been fine for about an hour or so now. Her body was throbbing. She said her good-nights and headed up to Edward's childhood room. Everything was as she remembered it when he'd left for college. His high school hockey jersey was still on the back of the door. She found a button up shirt and a pair of his boxers before heading into the bathroom.

By the time she was ready for bed, she really wished she'd told Esme that she did actually need the pills. The pain was excruciating and the hot water hadn't done too much to help. She laid awake for almost an hour before finally getting comfortable enough to sleep. The comfort wasn't about her body, she was scared.

_After Mike prevented her from leaving the house, he spun her around. She fought, pounding on his chest and kicking at his legs. It didn't help her at all, in fact, it pissed him off more. She went for his balls and he pushed her away from him, slamming her into the small table. The contents went everywhere and Bella realized she was bleeding...she must have busted her eyebrow open. Before she could pick herself back up, he grabbed her by the forearm and hauled her up. "Mike, please, just let me go. I won't say anything to anyone. Please."_

_He walked her over to the steps leading into the living room and practically threw her. She landed on the glass coffee table, sending glass flying everywhere and causing her arm to begin bleeding. She felt numb and briefly wondered to herself if that was normal. She didn't have much time to ponder it because the next thing he did was pull her up again, shoving her back down, this time, her ribs came in contact with the part of the coffee table that was still somewhat standing. _

_She wanted to run but couldn't stand up. For the first time, she was wondering if this was it, was she going to die? Her whole body just seemed to shut down but she refused to pass out. "Stand up," Mike demanded._

_She tried to answer, to tell him she couldn't move, but no words were coming out. He must have got frustrated because he grabbed the back of her hair and pulled her up. She screamed out and he threw her back down again. This time, her lip hit the corner of the glass table. She felt around, feeling for broken teeth while he told her to stand up again. She knew it. She was going to die. Her instincts told her to do something that made no sense but she did it anyway. "Edward!" She began to scream, knowing no one would hear her. It took her awhile to realize no one would hear her anyway either way...they were silent screams...no sound was coming out._

Those screams must have been loud and clear as she had this nightmare because she woke up to Esme, Carlisle, Emmett, and Rose trying to wake her up. Her throat hurt from screaming, her ribs hurt from the way she was laying, her head and heart were both pounding. Tremors racked her body as Emmett and Carlisle tried to calm her down. She felt her stomach flop and pushed past them, off of the bed, making it to the bathroom just in time. As soon as she slammed the door shut, everything that had been in her stomach made its way back up.

While she felt like she'd been curled up as small as she could make herself between the toilet and the wall for what seemed like a few seconds, it really must have been a few minutes because everyone seemed to be banging on the other side of the door. First Carlisle, then Emmett, then Rose, and finally Esme had come back. She put her hands over her ears, trying to block out the noise. When the knocking stopped, she relaxed a little and listened.

"What the hell's going on?" Edward's voice could be heard from outside the door.

"She's locked herself in the bathroom, she won't answer us. She woke up screaming for you and then took off into there," Emmett explained.

"Dad! Grab me the screwdriver from my bottom desk drawer!" Edward yelled out.

All was quiet for a few moments until she heard the door knob rattling and eventually falling off the door. Edward stepped through the doorway, not letting anyone else see into the room. He walked over to her and held out his hand. "Come on. You're alright."

Bella didn't know what to say so she began to sob. He carried her into his room and once she was on the bed, he stood up, looking like he couldn't decide to run or to hold her. He looked towards the door, looking like he was going to leave, when she began to panic again. "No! You can't...you should...you need...I need you...I need you to stay. You can't leave! You just can't!"

He walked over and sat down beside her, holding her to him as he rocked her back and forth. "Bells, you_ wanted_ me to leave. That's _why_ I left. I didn't do it to hurt you! I'm not going anywhere!"

"I'm just...I'm so angry! Edward, I'm mad at you. I'm mad at myself! I'm so confused and I'm scared and I don't want to lose you but I don't trust you and..."

"Talk to me...tell my why you're mad. Scream at me, yell at me, don't hold all of this in and drive yourself crazy with it!"

She stood up, angry and wanting to scream. "You cheated on me! You're _son _died and what did you do? You crawled to _her_! The stupid bitch who hates me! How _could_ you? Edward, the night I was raped...yes...there I said it! The night I was _raped _you were with her! Did you hit her? Did you hit her like you do to me? Did you make her beg for it or did you just dive right in? How _dare_ you!"

"Bella..."

"No! I already know! _I'm_ wrong too! There's _nothing_ I can do to fix it! I turned away from you, I left you when you needed me. She saved you! Tanya saved you when I couldn't! I'm being completely selfish, staying with you like this. I just need you so much that I can't let you go..."

"You _said _we would try to fix this, Bella! You _said_ we would try. Are you giving up already? Is everyone else right? You're going to get help, make yourself better, and then throw divorce papers back in my face? I can't do it again. I need to know that you aren't going to take off on me again. I need you too!"

"I don't want to leave you but I'm scared if I stay you'll cheat again or something worse will happen. I'm worried that if I don't leave now we're going to hurt each other. What if I get pregnant again? What if I hurt that baby? Dammit, I'm so confused and I don't know what to do but all I know is that I want you! I want you and that's the only thing my brain is registering right now. I was so upset, so scared yesterday when you told me about those girls that I just let it go. I can't deal with all of this.

"I don't think that what you did was right but I can understand. I cheated on you, too. We both know it wasn't the same...it wasn't sex...but it was just as bad! I still feel like I can't trust you."

"You think I can trust you right now? You keep talking about leaving like it's bound to happen. I am sick and tired of going in circles with you, Bella! It's been like this since Edward Jr. died. You love me one day and the next you 'can't be with me'. How many times am I supposed to sit here and listen to that? I did what you asked...what needed to be done...I made my best attempt to get rid of Tanya for good. I haven't asked for one thing from you!

"I need a little support here. You came in, chewed out Tanya, and mom told me you _wanted_ to come back! You_ knew _she would be here. You told me you would let me do this. Alone. Either you didn't trust me _and_ Emmett or you _wanted _to hurt her. Either way, you started all of this tonight. You got so pissed off about me liking it rough that you wouldn't even speak to me. I'd just told one of my oldest friends goodbye, that I wasn't even going to talk to them anymore. I did that for you! You haven't tried to do anything in return accept deny me when I wanted to explain. You say you don't trust me well let me fucking tell you what happened and _then_ make a judgement.

"I am fed up with all of this. I need to know if you trust me enough to let things go and move forward. If not, dammit, we'll go down to my office right fucking now, draw up the paperwork and I'll sign the damn divorce papers. As far as I'm concerned, I'm tired, I'm frustrated, I'm hurt, and I'm completely ready to give up. It's going to kill me but I can and will do it if you push me any further. I love you and somewhere deep down in that mess of emotions, you fucking know it."

"So what did happen with Tanya then? Answer me that!"

"You really want to know? I was out with Emmett when I saw you shoving your tongue down Mike's throat. You were pressing against him like he was your lifeline. I left and Tanya was at the next bar we stopped at. We kissed in the car and one thing led to another. I was drinking, she was drinking, we fucked, it lasted probably a whole three minutes and I passed out. There, now you have it. The whole damn story. I never did anything with her that I would have done with you! Ever. I told you I have to trust you just as much as you have to trust me and that's not going to work right now. The night of Em's wedding, I danced with her and she made a comment about me being tied down to you. I jokingly said something about the fact that I'm never the submissive in a relationship. She was angry with you earlier. She twisted my words, having no fucking clue how close she was to the truth. That's what happened. Believe it or not. At this point, you just want to run again and if you do that, I want out. I can't do this anymore. I'll help you get help, I'll try to keep you from Mike, but I can't keep doing this anymore. I'm done, Bella."

She was still standing there and when he was finished she plopped onto the bed in a sitting position. With her head in her hands and tears in her eyes, she sighed and shook her head. "I don't know what to do. I don't know where to go from here."

"Are you going to be able to forgive me? Do you see the slightest chance or would you rather just take off running again? I need to know. You have my total commitment. From here on out, I will do my best to not speak to Tanya but I need to know. Do you plan to leave me?"

After a while, she finally lifted her head and turned to him. "We both know that if it wasn't for what happened with Mike, we would still be the same way that we were a week ago. I wasn't going to come back. I want you to be happy. That's why I did it. I didn't know if I wanted kids, I was hurt because of the stripper, I could tell you weren't happy with me. That I wasn't enough for you and I didn't want to see you hurting anymore. I've brought enough hurt into your life. I think today just proves that."

"Bella, I'm going to be completely and totally honest. You weren't enough for me. You completely shut down on me. You wouldn't speak to me for days and we were living under the same roof. You wanted me to try to forget I'd even had a son. You wanted me to deal with all the hard parts, by myself, and still just hang around and just be happy to be there. That wasn't fair. I needed you, Bella. Tanya was someone for me to turn to, who wasn't my family. Don't tell me you didn't talk to Jacob. Don't tell me you never went to his house without Leah being there. Don't tell me you didn't sit in his living room, drinking something alcoholic, and crying on his shoulder.

"I love you very, very much but you hurt me—a lot. Bella, if I didn't love you, why would I still be here? Why would I not sign those papers for almost nine months? So here I am. This is what you're getting. Either you want me, all of me, or you don't want any of me. I need to know. You don't need to worry about money. Ever. Even if you decide to walk out and never look back you will have enough money to be set for life. So there it is. Your choice. You can't keep doing this to me, to us. What's it going to be?"

Bella was speechless. Her instincts were to run from this man who seemed to make her life crazy but at the same time, she wanted to jump into his arms and stay there forever. She did have a choice to make and her entire being was screaming at her that she was a total idiot if she left him. She couldn't even get through one night alone without him. He had no idea how much she loved him. He was right, though, she did this just as much as he did. She was getting him for what he was and he was getting the same from her. They were both fucked up, both hurt, and both in love with each other.

"Okay, here's the deal," she said through tears, "I will promise never to turn my back on you again. I will promise to never leave you like that again. I will promise to never mention divorce again. In return, you have to promise to never cheat again, to be patient with me because I'm a total fucking mess right now, and most importantly—you have to promise you won't ask me to renew our vows. We are already married. I don't want a whole church full of people to hear what our vows to each other are. So, right here, Edward Anthony Cullen, at," Bella glanced at the night stand, "twelve thirty am, in your parent's house, on you childhood bed...vow to me that you can keep these promises and I swear to you, I will keep mine."

Bella watched as her husband just sat there for a minute. He was smiling through his tears, the man looked like he'd just one the fucking lottery. He finally got up and walked around to the side Bella was sitting. Kneeling in front of her he said in a hoarse voice, "Isabella Marie Cullen, I promise to stay faithful. I promise to be patient with you because we are both a fucking mess, and most importantly, I promise to never ask you to renew our vows in front of a third party...ever. Will you do this with me? Get counseling, learn how to love each other again, and be there for each other? No more doing this alone?"

"Yes. I promise," she whispered before leaning towards him and before she knew it, they were kissing. It had been so, so long since she'd felt his lips on hers this way. She reveled in it. There was no way in hell she could have left him. It wasn't because of Mike. It wasn't because Tanya was out of the picture. It wasn't because she wanted his money. It wasn't because she wanted another baby. It was because she loved him. As simple as that sounded, it was the strongest bond two people could form and there was no way in hell she could describe in words how she felt about him.

**I promised more drama and I can guarantee there will be more to come ;) How much do you hate me for making Edward yell at Bella? It was hard to write but I just think he needed to put his foot down. So, let me know what you think, just don't rip into me too badly... Until next time, LP xo**


	19. Chapter 19

**I have over 60 reviews now! I had no idea how easily checking my email for alerts could become this addicting. I know I have a few to respond to but didn't want to keep you waiting for a new chapter :) I love all my reviewers dearly! Shout out to my Beta!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "Yes. I promise," she whispered before leaning towards him and before she knew it, they were kissing. It had been so, so long since she'd felt his lips on hers this way. She reveled in it. There was no way in hell she could have left him. It wasn't because of Mike. It wasn't because Tanya was out of the picture. It wasn't because she wanted his money. It wasn't because she wanted another baby. It was because she loved him. As simple as that sounded, it was the strongest bond two people could form and there was no way in hell she could describe in words how she felt about him.**

**Chapter 19**

Bella woke up with swollen eyes from crying the night before. She smiled to herself when she realized her lips felt swollen as well. The night had turned out surprisingly well. She finally felt like there was hope. Her husband must have felt it too because he'd went right along with their hour long make out session. Her tears had started out painful ones but ended happy. She wasn't happy now to see that she was the only one in the big bed.

Carefully sitting up, Bella looked over and saw that it was just after nine. Edward would have already left for work and her appointment with the counselor was in two hours. She started to get her things ready and change back into her clothes when there was a knock on the door. "Come in."

"I just wanted to make sure you were up," Esme said, poking her head in and then opening the door the rest of the way, "Edward said you had an appointment at eleven and to wake you up so you'd have enough time. How are you feeling?"

"I'm not as sore as I have been but it still hurts, depending on how I move. I guess my dignity is in worse shape," Bella cringed at the thought of what Edward's family had witnessed the night before.

"You've been through something none of us could even imagine. You have every right to have these little emotional breaks. Don't ever think that we think any less of you. I just really hope you're not mad that I called him last night. I didn't know what else to do and I figured he was the one you wanted."

"I'm not mad at all. Last night, believe it or not, helped... Edward and I talked a lot. We're going to try to work things out. We are going to try to start over again. I know we've both made a lot of stupid decisions but I love your son more than anything in the world."

"Good, then does that mean you two are going to like back track completely? Go on dates? Or do you plan to jump right in and live together?"

"I think live together. We've been through so much. We already know each other in and out. Dates would just be pointless. Another thing, we both refuse to renew our vows or have some type of party. This is something he and I need to work on together."

"Well, then, I guess it's safe for me to give you this back," she smiled, reaching into her pocket and pulling out Bella's wedding ring, "there ya go, Mrs. Edward Cullen. Take care of it. I'm assuming you still have the actual band?"

"Yeah," Bella smiled, showing her left hand, "I've carried it around with me everywhere since I took them off. I was just worried I would have lost your mother's ring."

"Since Ally came along, I'd planned to give it to her but then decided to give it to the first kid to get married. When Edward asked me about it, when he was in college, I wasn't the least bit worried that it would be in good hands with the two of you. It's yours now but I would love to keep it in the family."

"Esme, I'll keep it safe. I promise..." she was interrupted by another knock on the door.

"May I come in?" Carlisle asked. When Bella called for him to come in, he smiled at her, "Seems that someone is feeling a bit better today. How are you?"

"I've been better," Bella said with a small smile.

"Edward said your appointment was at eleven o clock. Would you mind if I drove you to the hospital for it? I know you don't have a car. Edward told me he wanted to be there but something came up at work and he'll be tied up. How about we go, I'll wait for you, and then we can take him some lunch? Sound like a plan?"

"Yeah, sounds great," Bella looked down at herself and remembered she hadn't changed yet. "Do you mind if we stop at the apartment. I need clean clothes and I really, really want my pills."

"I don't mind but I brought you some from the hospital," Carlisle said, giving her a conspiratorial wink.

"Thanks but they'll have to wait until after this meeting. They make me so tired..."

"Just cut one in half. It won't be as effective but it will definitely help. There's no reason for you to be in pain all day."

They had stopped for her to change before heading to the hospital. The counseling offices were bright and cheery, something that was so opposite how Bella felt, she wanted to rip the paint off the walls and color in the designs on the furniture using a black permanent marker. Finally, the woman she recognized came out, shook Carlise's hand, and let her to a little office.

Once seated, she told Bella to talk about herself. Give some details about her life. Bella started with her childhood, growing up with the reservation kids in Forks. How when she was still in elementary school, her parents divorced and she moved with Renee to Phoenix. The story went on through meeting Edward, her college, the wedding, but she stopped before the pregnancy. She couldn't do it. The curly haired blonde counselor looked at her and asked, "Were there any other important moments in your life?"

Bella knew what she was asking and stayed silent. _It's true. I can't do this. _After what seemed like forever, the kind woman backed off. "Alright, tell me about your husband. Tell me three things you dislike about him."

_Wow, she's really just jumping right in. We're starting with the dislikes? _"Well...um...he cheated, he has this friend who he has...or maybe had...feelings for, and um...he's protective of me to the point that he sort of drives himself a little crazy."

"Okay. So you consider the last one a bad thing?"

"Shouldn't I? I worry that he worries about me. He watches me like a hawk now. I don't want the man to get a freaking ulcer over worrying about me."

"Okay, that can be your third dislike," Kathy gave in with a smile.

"Now, tell me three things you like about him."

She didn't have to think as long this time, "He always takes care of me, he's kind, he always tries to help others, he loves his family, he's gorgeous too—I won't deny that..."

"So which three are you picking?" Kathy interrupted.

"Oh, um...I guess that he always tries to help people, he's kind, and he...he loves me."

"So we're adding another to the big list," she asked, laughing this time.

"Yeah. I guess we are," Bella admitted.

"Do you still plan to divorce him?"

"No," Bella responded without hesitation.

"What changed in such a short amount of time?"

"I...um...I guess I just forgot how much I loved being with him. Even when things are bad...really bad...just having him there makes me feel good."

"So, why did you want the divorce to begin with?"

"We weren't...we lost...," the tears began and she became quiet.

Kathy handed her a tissue. She had been there when they'd lost the baby. Giving her a knowing look she asked, "So things got bad then?"

"Yeah. I was so, so happy before that night. He'd never done anything, ever, to make me unhappy with him...except stupid little things. Like, the girl he cheated on me with when we were separating—she's a close friend of his...was a close friend of his...from when he was younger. She wants him. For a long time she'd call and she'd even call him when she needed a ride home from some bar..."

"Did he ever go?"

"Yeah. Once. I went with him. She could barely walk she was so trashed. I was so mad at him for going to get her that the whole ride home was completely silent. I didn't speak to him for two days after that. We just kind of hovered around one another. We eventually caved and he agreed that while he didn't regret doing it, he understood why it would be an issue for her to call him like she was. He talked to her and that ended the late night calls and they quit talking to each other for awhile.

"I'm not really sure when they started talking again, it could have been after Tanya's family came apart, her father decided to cut her off. She was completely broke and had nowhere to go. Edward never gave her a penny but he did help her find a job. They started talking again then. She didn't really bother with me or our relationship until...until the funeral. She acted colder towards me then, worse than what it was. I know she loves him...not just his money...she was jealous of our relationship from the beginning. She jumped in at an opportune time."

"Why was it a good time, Bella?"

"Because she knew I wasn't...dealing with...things... as well as I probably should have been. I didn't want to talk to him so I just didn't. We got into a fight. It was so, so stupid. I told him to leave. I've never asked him to leave. It hurt to bad...he was a constant reminder..." Bella stopped for a minute to catch her breath, "anyway, he left. Went to his parents and then ended up at some bar because he didn't want to come home. He was drinking and Tanya showed up. She got him to talk about...they started drinking and he ended up at her place."

"So he slept with her?"

"No. His brother and sister showed up at the house and brought him home. It hadn't gone that far. That same day, while he was gone, Charlie had a heart attack. Jake drove up from Forks to tell me. We left that night, Edward and I never discussed what happened but Emmett, his brother, gave me the story—at least the parts I didn't know about."

"Who's Jake?"

"A good friend." Bella realized how this must sound to the counselor.

"Alright, well, we're almost out of time but I wanted to talk to you. Everything you say here is completely confidential. Although, you know that I'll be seeing him tomorrow. Is there anything you want me to let him know? Something you can't bring yourself to tell him? Something you think he needs to work on?"

"I don't know. I guess I just want him to know that I'm going to be okay. I don't want him to be so scared for me."

"He did mention panic attacks. Bella, have you had problems with anxiety in the past?"

"No. Not that I know of."

"Alright, I'm going to prescribe something to help take the edge off. There's only two issues. One, there are a lot of side effects. If you have any problems, stop taking them, come back in and I'll talk to the psychiatrist in charge...I'm not technically able to prescribe anything but she is. Second, are you taking pain pills?"

"Yeah...but I think I can stop whenever. I'm not hurting so much anymore. It's more a mental thing than a physical one."

"Okay. No more pain pills if you are taking these. If you have to wait to start them, that's fine. You can set up another appointment with the girl at the front desk, preferably for sometime later this week. Good luck with things. If you ever need me, you have my number. I just have to add this...communicate with him. I'll let him know that you're going to be okay—it's going to take awhile—but you will be."

Bella walked into the small waiting area to find Carlisle talking away with the woman at the front desk . When he saw her, he smiled and introduced them, "Bella, this is the nursing student turned RN that helped me deliver Emmett. She's filling in for the regular girl who works here. Kelsey, this is Bella Cullen, my daughter-in-law."

"Emmett's wife?"

"No, Edward's," Bella answered with a smile, remembering how great it felt to say that.

"Ah, Mr. Edward Cullen. Crazy hair, tall, dark, and handsome?" she asked, jokingly.

"That's him," Bella said, rolling her eyes. Edward usually did leave an impression on the women he came in contact with. She couldn't blame them. Now, though, unlike other times, she felt a tinge of jealousy. She had to remember this woman was about her age when Edward's older brother was born. She was a friend of his father's. _What the hell is wrong with me?__She could be his mother._

Twenty minutes later they pulled into the firm's parking lot, bag of sandwiches in hand. "Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Carlisle asked for the eighth time.

"I'll be fine, really. It's a five minute walk back to the apartment. I'm just going to have lunch and head out. I'll see you later."

She walked down the winding mess of hallways until she came to the area of the building she was familiar with. She couldn't remember how many times she'd come to meet him for lunch. When she glanced over she saw that Betty, Edward's secretary, wasn't sitting behind her desk. Bella felt a pang of disappointment. The woman claimed she was sixty-four years young and was the closest thing to a grandmother Bella had known.

She took the empty desk as an okay to head towards his office door. She reached for the knob, about to pull it open when she heard a voice call out, "Hey! You can't just go in there!"

Bella turned to see a tall brunette dressed in a tight white shirt and a pencil stripe black skirt. Her hair was down and she had a pair of glasses, which Bella had no doubt this woman could make glasses look sexy, in her hand. "I'm here to see..."

"He's in a meeting. Do you have an appointment?" The brunette was being snotty enough that Bella had to bite back a nasty remark.

"No. I don't..."

"Well, then you're going to have to come back tomorrow. He's booked all day. If you need..."

"When's the meeting over?" Bella realized this girl had no idea who she was but she obviously knew a great deal about her husband. She figured it might be interesting to let this play out.

"I don't know..."

"I can wait," Bella said as calmly as she could, turning around and sitting beside the reception desk.

"Fine but he's not going to have time to talk to you," the strange woman said as she gave up the fight.

What happened next almost made Bella drop her cover. The woman came around and sat down behind Betty's desk. That's when everything clicked. The woman looked like a secretary from a bad porn movie because she was a secretary...her husband's secretary. She almost said something when she heard footsteps and talking and finally saw Edward. He had his phone out as he absently called over, "Hey, Nat, you get something for lunch yet? I'm going to run over to the deli."

"Thanks but I already grabbed something. There's coffee brewing—it should be done soon, I figured you'd need it after that meeting."

_Nat? What kind of name is Nat? _Bella almost died when her phone beeped loudly in her pocket and she pulled it out. The id came up as Edward—he was calling her. She bit her lip and decided to stand up so he could see her and answer it. Phone to her ear, she stood abruptly, and asked, "Where's Betty?"

If she wasn't so pissed off, she probably would have laughed. He went from being calm and in charge to shock. Then, he surprised her by walking over to her, putting his phone away. He pulled her into a hug and she watched with satisfaction as _Nat_ watched from behind the desk. "What's wrong? Are you okay? Did something happen?"

Bella was surprised by this, she'd been preparing herself to rip into him. "No. I mean, I'm fine. I thought you could use some lunch...your dad dropped me off after my appointment."

"Oh," Edward said, breathing a little easier.

Bella still needed some answers, "I've already been informed that you are busy all afternoon though. I won't keep you. Here's your lunch."

She meant to hand it to him and walk away, letting him know they were definitely going to talk about this when he got home. Instead, he reached out to her and gently took the bag with hers in it too. I have a half hour for lunch. You're fine."

"Not according to her," Bella said, a little more coldly than was probably necessary.

They both turned toward the 'her' in question, she was looking at them with the most confused look Bella had ever seen. "Who..."

"I'm sorry, Bella, this is Natalia Chase. She's my secretary. Nat, this is Bella, my wife."

_Oh. Awesome. Natalia. Couldn't be a name like Agnes or Esther. Nope, it had to be Natalia. It even __sounded sexy. _"What happened to Betty?"

"Oh my, God!" Bella heard the brunette gush out. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Cullen. I really didn't know who you were. Your husband is a very busy man and I thought you were a client trying to get in without an appointment. I didn't mean..."

"Betty's in the Bahamas. She retired about six months ago. Natalia, its fine. Next time, when she comes, let her into my office and page me. Do you mind grabbing us both some coffee?"

Bella let him lead her into his office and guide her over to a comfortable chair. Instead of going around to the other side of his desk, he sat down right beside her. "Where'd ya find that one at?" Bella asked him dryly.

"I didn't. You can thank Rose. They're pretty close friends. Natalia's a single mom and she was laid off from her last job. Rose talked Trent into hiring her, which worked out because Betty was getting ready to retire. I had nothing to do with the hiring or the placement and she did come on to me...once...and I had Rose talk to her. She hasn't even batted an eyelash since."

"She's very pretty," Bella said with a sad smile.

"Yeah. She is. She's not my Bella, though. No one else ever will be. Now, tell me, how did things go today? I don't need to know the details but are you planning to keep going? Was she nice?"

"Yes and yes. She's really sweet and doesn't judge me like I thought she would. It's more of a conversation. She's so easy to talk to," Bella explained, unwrapping her sandwich and taking a bite.

"I'm glad. I think we both can benefit a lot from this."

Natalia came back in with their coffees in hand. "I didn't know what you wanted in yours, Mrs. Cullen, so I brought you a little of everything to add if you wanted it."

"Just call me Bella. I'll be around a lot more so you might as well get used to me," Bella said, trying to give her a warm smile.

After she left, Edward looked at her and said, "While you're here, I might as well talk to you about something that came up. Trent asked me yesterday if I would go to Chicago to meet a high-profile client with Collin next weekend. He wants us to leave Friday evening, have the meetings Saturday and Sunday, and come home Sunday night. I told him it would depend on how you were feeling by then. I just want you to know about it and tell me your opinion. I mentioned it to my parents and they offered for you to stay with them while I'm gone—I can't bring myself to leave you alone for that long right now."

"I'll be fine. I'll miss you like crazy but I'll be fine. Promise me something, though?"

"Anything."

"No. Girls. I'm serious. This is the one thing you are really going to have to prove. You have to stay faithful. I'm not kidding. One more time will be the end of us. Got it?"

"Yes. You have me word. I love you, Bells."

"I love you, too. I really don't want you to miss something for work because of me. I can always take up your mom and dad on their offer."

Edward caught her off guard, "You're wearing your wedding rings again. Both of them."

"I am Mrs. Edward Cullen," she said with a smirk, "besides, you have your ring on still."

"Yeah, but I never took it off. This is really happening isn't it? It's not a dream? You're mine again," Bella had to smile at how happy he looked.

"Yep. You're stuck with me again. Now, eat before some crazy client comes trying to get in without having an appointment."

The next morning, Edward woke up with Bella tangled up around him. Her legs were twisted with his, her arms were underneath one of his, even her fingers were in his hair. She looked so content as she sighed in her sleep. The night before, he'd caught her itching at the stitches on her arm and called his dad. Carlisle had brought over some type of cream and a roll of gauze to cover it up. They both knew she hated having to look at it.

Not wanting to leave her, he still had to get ready for work. He'd already hit the snooze about a hundred times. Bella slept through it—she'd always been a heavy sleeper. He made himself breakfast, sticking the rest of his scrambled eggs on a plate and setting them in the microwave for her. He had meetings all morning and was taking an hour long lunch so that he could go to his appointment with the counselor. He was dreading it. There were things he just simply didn't want to talk about. He did want to thank her for the pills Bella had started last night. She went off the pain pills and he'd given them to his father to dispose of. He'd worked on a couple cases where drug addicts break into homes, steal prescription drugs, and in the process have killed the people living there. When he'd told Bella about it, she'd rolled her eyes and asked, "Paranoid much, Cullen?"

Her body was definitely healing but she had awhile to go before she was a hundred percent. At least physically, she could become a hundred percent. He knew emotionally the chances of her ever getting there were slim. He worried about her all the time, concerned that if something, God forbid, did happen to her again, she wouldn't have any fight left to protect herself. The Bella he married would have put up a fight about his secretary, tried talking him into switching with someone, not because she wanted to be dramatic, she just wanted to get the point across that she wasn't happy about it. In the end, she would have dropped it. That's how they had always been. They would fight tooth and nail about small, stupid things and then make it up to each other in the bedroom.

Now, he knew that they would probably never get back to that. Bella needed someone to keep her safe right now, not pick fights with her. It didn't matter if it took the rest of their lives to get anywhere near back to how they were a year ago. He refused to let her fall away from him and vowed to be there with her for the roller coaster ride he knew was coming. Wondering for the thousandth time if he should leave her next weekend, if he_ could_ leave her for the weekend, he thought of all the problems they had yet to face. Mike was still out there, Tanya was probably cooking something up, and Bella was nowhere near emotionally stable yet.

**This chapter was more to tie up some loose ends. The next chapter will skip ahead in time...to the next weekend. There will be drama, I promise. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, let me know what you think! Until next time, LP xo**

**I literally just looked at the traffic page...there have been exactly 11,000 hits to this story. Were I the Grinch, my heart would have grown three sizes! I love you all!**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

"So, Edward, why don't we start with you telling me a little bit about yourself?" The counselor, who he and Bella both just called Kathy, asked him with a smile.

"Well, I'm married...to Bella...which I guess you already know," he laughed nervously before awkwardly continuing, "I'm also a lawyer. I work primarily with divorce cases now but it really just depends on who my boss needs me to take on."

"Do you work a lot? Long hours?"

"No, well, a lot more than most people but I don't consider myself a workaholic. I was before I got Bella back. It was an escape."

"It's interesting that you are a divorce lawyer, did that ever effect the decisions you made in handling the situation when Bella wanted one?"

"I don't know. I guess it probably did. Not enough for it to make a huge difference but I knew I didn't want to be like a lot of the clients I deal with."

"Can you elaborate?"

"They are just so...I guess intent on hurting each other. They want money or revenge...not all of them but most do. With Bella, I guess my first instinct is to keep her from being hurt, not do the hurting. I guess I kind of screwed that up now didn't I?"

"You love her deeply, don't you, Edward?"

"Yes," he said, his voice thick.

"What do you love so much about her? Give me three things."

"She's a good person, she's passionate no matter what she's doing, she's sweet, and beautiful, and she drives me crazy. I get so mad at her sometimes but I'm completely addicted. She's so headstrong, stubborn...well, she used to be, anyway..."

"Is that something you love about her? The fact that she's stubborn?"

"Yeah, I suppose I love all of her. Even the parts that aren't so fun all the time."

"What parts? Give me three things you don't love about her or just maybe dislike."

"I don't like...I don't like that she's so dependent right now. She is too hard on herself. I also don't like that she's as close with her friend Jacob as she is, though, I'd never tell her that."

"So you don't like that she depends on you?"

"No, no, that's not it at all. That's what I wanted from the beginning. I wanted her to let me care for her, buy her nice things, support her...you didn't know her before. She used to have this passion for life. She was a fighter. She was independent and confident. Now, it's like she's lost her will."

"Can I let you in on something, Edward? She hasn't lost that will. If she had, we'd probably be seeing her in a straight jacket. She's been through a terrible amount of trauma. Between the loss of your son and the assault, a lot of people would have given up. She's fighting. Her just getting out of bed everyday, spending time with friends, trying to work things out with you, that's a fight enough for her.

"She wanted me to tell you something when we met. She wants you to know that she's going to be okay. She really is, Edward. Maybe not perfectly okay. Maybe not the woman you married. She's fighting though. You can't let yourself fall apart because you are too worried about her. She is concerned that you perhaps worry to _much_ for her."

"How can I not? Her rapist is still out there! She's been through this and I worry everyday that she's going to go back to being frightened. I worry that she's going to fall asleep and dream about what happened to her. It's happened a couple of times now. I don't want her to relive this anymore! She's self conscious because of her bruises and cuts. She's terrified of her own stitches, it makes her sick to look at them. She starts to shake for no reason at all and nothing I do can fix it. I want to fix it. I want to take all of this away from her. It's my fault it happened. I shouldn't have _let_ it happen!"

"This wasn't your fault. She had been telling you for months to leave her alone, that she wanted a divorce. You cannot keep blaming yourself for this. If anything, I'm glad you were there for her after it happened. When she panicked at the hospital, they reported it to me, which is why I came right away. Before I even got there, you had her calmer then she'd been since she'd arrived. Don't be so hard on yourself. Don't keep focusing on the past. Focus on the future. With her, anyway. With me, we need to talk about the past so I can try to help. Why were you so against the divorce? She told me that you refused to sign the papers. You knew she couldn't take you to court and hire someone to help her."

"I didn't want a divorce. I wanted her. I felt if I didn't sign the papers it wouldn't be real. That she didn't actually want it. I know I was lying to myself. I think I finally let myself believe it the night things happened with Mike Newton. The night she was assaulted. I finally gave in."

"Gave in to what?"

"Not what, who. Tanya Denali. My ex-girlfriend. I slept with her."

"The night Bella was assaulted?"

"Yes," he said, his head down in shame.

"Edward, you couldn't have known what was going to happen..."

"I saw her with him. With Newton. They were dancing and making out. I was so angry that I left with my brother Emmett and my friend Jasper. The next club we went to, Tanya was there. I drank more than I should have and before I knew it, I was waking up beside her."

"Do you remember it?"

"Yes and I'll regret it for the rest of my life."

"Were you careful...used protection?"

"Yes. She tried to talk me out of it. Even totally drunk I knew it wasn't okay."

"So, this was the turning point. Before then you'd never been with her."

"Never. I had talked with her before. We were really close for a long time. Until Bella came along, I considered her one of my closest friends."

"Is Bella the reason you didn't consider her that anymore?"

"Mostly, yeah, but Tanya did things purposely to upset Bella. To make her jealous. She wanted us to break up. I quit talking to her for awhile because of it. Tanya's older brother died a couple years ago. It ripped her family in half. Her father disowned her when she stood up for her mother, who blamed her father for Josh's death. Tanya's mother took off, leaving Tanya and Carmen, her older sister, to deal with everything on their own.

"Her father's a total asshole. She tried to apologize but he wouldn't speak to her. Carmen had tried to stay neutral so he didn't have a problem with her. Anyway, long story short, Tanya went from being rich to being completely broke in a matter of days. It would have killed Bella if I tried to pay for things so I just let her talk to me. I let her vent and I even tried to talk to her father...it didn't help. I helped her find a job but I didn't give her any money. I knew it wasn't my place. Tanya didn't take being a working class girl very well. Things were fine for awhile but a few months later, she started trying to hint that Bella and I weren't meant for each other. She'd made suggestive comments about the two of us. I really think she just did it because she wanted my money."

"It escalated to the point that I quit talking to her. She pretty much left us alone until we lost...until the funeral. Then she started trying to get together with me again."

"You've mentioned Jacob. I want to talk about him next time. Until then, do you have anything you need me to tell Bella for you? Good or bad?"

He thought for a moment then answered, "From here on out, it's only about her. Everything else can wait."

One Week Later

"Ugh," Bella moaned, tilting her head back further, giving Edward more access to her neck. The bright morning light was filtering through the windows, warming the room and lighting the different shades of Edward's hair. He was so beautiful. These little sessions had become normal for them over the past week and a half. Edward would hit the snooze button four to five times before finally turning off the alarm and waking her up.

He would start with her arm, the one that was now all yellow and brown, kissing up to her neck then eventually ending on her lips. She was always awake by then but kept that little secret to herself. She would eventually start to kiss him back and it would get more and more passionate. It had come close to more than just kissing a few times but never quite.

Today, Edward was leaving after work. He wouldn't be home for two nights. The thought made her sick in the stomach but she didn't want him to know that. With him leaving, she wanted to give him a reason to come back. He was kissing her collar bone and she could feel him, hard against her leg. She took the opportunity to reach down and grab him through his thin boxers.

He sucked in a quick breath, surprised, she had never let it get that far. They hadn't touched each other this way since they lost the baby. "Bella..." he warned.

"Shh, just relax, let me do this for you," she whispered into his ear.

He leaned away from her, back onto his pillow, and moaned, "Oh, Bella..."

She pulled his boxers away so he sprang free. Working him harder, she she could feel herself getting wet. Looking at him, sprawled on the bed, muscles tightening as she worked him, she realized how much she missed this. "I'm not gonna last..."

"Then don't. Come for me, baby," she said seductively.

A few seconds later came in her other hand and she walked into the bathroom to clean up. When she returned, he was still in bed, "Mr. Cullen, you're going to be late..."

"I don't really give a damn, Mrs. Cullen. Get back over here," he smiled at her.

She climbed up beside him and he began kissing her again. He surprised her by unbuttoning the shirt she had on—his shirt that he'd had on the day before—and rubbing her right, unbruised breast. She moaned against his mouth and he pulled away, only to put his mouth on her nipple. She cried out and grabbed his back, trying to not scratch him with her nails. She wondered briefly if she could orgasm from this alone. Still sucking on her, he made his way down to the band of her panties.

Bella went into panic mode. She gasped and pulled away from him. He immediately let go of her, Bella could tell he was trying not to look hurt. Her heart twisted to see him look so sad. "Edward, it's not you. I swear to God, it's not you. I'm so sorry."

"No, Bella, it's fine. You don't have to apologize. I shouldn't have..."

"It was good, I like it...just not yet."

"Okay, yeah, I understand," he said, kissing her on the cheek before standing up.

"Why don't you jump in the shower and I'll cook you breakfast. How does french toast sound?" Bella asked, with a smile.

"It sounds great, love. I'll be out in a couple of minutes."

Bella watched him walk away, wanting so badly to jump back into bed with him, she couldn't believe she'd reacted that way. When she went into the kitchen, she saw her phone on the counter. She picked it up and saw that Rose had sent her two texts. "R u still coming with us?" and "Do you want Em to pick you up?"

She made the french toast she'd promised him, setting the small table, and sat down to text Rose back. "If he wouldn't mind, that would be great. What time?"

"Smells amazing, angel. Whatcha doing?" Edward asked from the doorway.

"Talking to Rose about tonight. I guess Emmett's going to drive."

"Are you sure you're up for this? Don't feel like you can't tell them no."

"Edward, eat your french toast and relax. It's only a couple of hours. Even Alice is going for a little bit. I'm sure she won't be too wild on behalf of that big tummy of hers. I'll be fine."

"Stay close to Em, alright? Don't go off by yourself."

Letting out a small sigh, Bella looked at him, "Do you want me to stay home? If it will make you more comfortable I can just hang with Esme and Carlisle tonight. No big deal."

"No, go have fun. Just please, please be careful. Call me if you need anything."

"I will, I promise. Don't worry about me. If I go anywhere, I'll make sure I'm with someone."

After they'd finished breakfast, he kissed her by the door. "Are you sure you don't want me to take you to mom and dad's?"

"I'm positive. I'm going to clean up around here and shower. Then I'll head over. Besides, I'll need my car. Chill. I'm going to be completely fine, nothing has happened yet. I love you."

"I love you, too," he said, kissing her again, "Why don't you call me when you get back tonight? Just to let me know things are okay."

After reassuring and pushing Edward out the door, Bella showered and was now off to Edward's office. She was blasting Kesha and driving the newly serviced Volvo they'd finally picked up from the house a few days ago. She was excited for tonight, though she already missed her husband. Rose had been trying to get everyone together and they decided on this weekend since Alice was eight months along and had a short time before the baby came. They were going to a club where there was no smoking and lots of music.

The plan for the day was to surprise Edward with lunch, a final goodbye. When she'd found out he was leaving directly from work and wouldn't be able to tell her goodbye except for in the morning, she'd bought everything to make his favorite meal. The seafood alfredo was still steaming on the seat beside her.

She walked right in and gave Natalia a forced smile as she passed the reception desk. "Is he in?"

"Yeah. I'll have him paged for you. You can go on in, it's not locked."

"Don't page him. Do you know if he has lunch plans?" She was kind of irritated that this woman would know and she wouldn't.

"No plans that I know of. He should be back any minute now. His coat is hanging over there," she motioned to a coat rack in the corner, "I don't think he's going anywhere."

Bella went in and had a seat, setting down two plates and two wine glasses—into which she poured some sparkling cider. She'd wanted to bring wine but knew he shouldn't be drinking on the job. When she had their meal ready, she sat back and waited.

He showed about five minutes later, looking a little frazzled as he talked to Natalia. When he turned and saw her, his face lit up. "Hey, Bells," he said, looking over the desk turned table, "what's all this?"

"I just figured since I wouldn't see you for a couple days I would stop by with lunch. Are you hungry?"

"Starved. It's been a long morning," he walked over and kissed her, "I miss you already."

"Well, eat up, you don't have too long for lunch."

Once their plates were clean and they were full, she came around the desk and kissed him again. He pulled her into his lap so that her back was to him and he kissed the small of her neck. "God, I'm going to miss you."

"It's only a couple days," she said breathlessly, turning her head to meet his mouth. She could feel him hardening underneath her and pushed against him, trying not to moan.

He had her right breast in his hand and he rubbed her nipple through her clothes. She bit back a moan, reminding herself that Natalia was right outside. _Thank God for the blinds on the doors and windows. _She stood up and faced him just as he pushed her back gently so that she was sitting on his desk. He stood up, pushing her back farther onto it.

Continuing the kiss, this time he pulled her shirt up and made her way down her belly. She was biting her lip to keep from moaning. He began to kiss lower and just before he got to her jeans, asked, "Is this okay?"

"Yes. Keep going..."

He unbuckled her jeans and pulled them off. "Edward, Natalia's right outside!"

"The doors locked. Just relax," he had just enough time to say it before he pulled her small purple panties down and off. He was kneeling in front of her now, kissing the insides of her thighs. _Holy shit, I can't believe this is happening! Here! Where he works!_ She didn't have long to think about it because she felt his tongue against her clit. She grabbed at his hair and pulled him closer, he responded quickly, licking and sucking harder. She responded almost as quickly and came undone within seconds.

He stood up, wiping his mouth on a leftover napkin. "I love you, Bella."

"I love you, too," she whispered, totally out of breath and feeling like jello.

"I really hate to do this but I have to meet Trenton in five minutes."

"What about you?" Bella asked, glancing down at the bulge that had formed behind his black dress pants.

"You have no idea how much I would love to finish this but I really have to go," he kissed her forehead before reaching down and grabbing her panties off the floor. He helped her get dressed and after a few more kisses and a promise that he'd call when he landed, she reluctantly left. That had been the most interesting lunch they'd ever had together.

"Bella! They're here!" Esme called up to her at nine o'clock that night.

Bella came down the stairs and walked out to meet them. Dressed in a long-sleeved black lace top, jean skirt, and gray leggings, she slipped on her black boots. It wasn't quite cold enough to snow but it was definitely chilly. Rose whistled and hugged her...Emmett did the same...earning him a smack on the arm from his wife.

"You look incredible, Bells!" Rose gushed.

"Thanks. The shirt even covers up most of the bruises," Bella replied, only half joking.

Rose took a picture of her, sending it to Edward, "It'll give him something to think about tonight. Did he land yet?"

"No, he probably won't get there for awhile. Are Ally and Jazz meeting us?"

"Yeah, let's go," Emmett said, opening the back door for her.

Alice and Jasper were waiting for them at a table close to the bar. Bella choked back the lump in her throat when she saw Jasper's hand on Alice's enlarged belly. Not so long ago, that had been her and Edward. As if on cue, her phone beeped. She hugged them and said hello before looking to see who it was.

"Very nice. I landed. Call me later. Love you," the text from her husband read.

Beside her, Emmett showed her his phone, his read, "Tell Rose I said thanks. Keep an eye on her. Call me if any problems."

"He told me before he left to not leave your side," Bella said, rolling her eyes.

"Bells! We need drinks! Now! Let's go," Rose said, pulling her away. She laughed and followed her to the bar. Alice ordered a Shirley Temple, Bella a fuzzy naval, and Rose a Captain n' Coke. Drinks in hand, they made their way to the dance floor. As big as Alice was, the girl could still move, though it didn't last long. After one dance, she headed back to her husband and Emmett.

"So, how are you and Edward doing?" Rose asked over the music.

"Amazing! Rose, I miss him so much already. Sunday can't come soon enough!"

"I'm so happy you two are working things out. He loves you so much, Bells!"

"I know. He's made a lot of mistakes...we both have...I just want to put it behind us and move on!" Bella cheered optimistically.

"I'll drink to that!" Rose said laughing, lifting her glass in the air.

Emmett was watching his wife and sister in law when Carmen Denali approached him. "Hey, Em!"

"Oh, hey, Carmen. How have you been?" Emmett had known the Denali's his whole life and Carmen was an old friend of Rose's.

"Good, can't complain. I've been dating a guy named Jeremy. You'll have to meet him sometime."

"He's not here?"

"Nope. Girl's night out. Tanya, Kate, and I decided to ditch the guys. Well, Kate and I did, I guess Tanya is trying to forget your brother."

"Ah, yes, the drama of a century."

"No shit," she snorted, "believe me, I don't think either one of them are right. Sister or not, what Tanya did was wrong with a capital "W"."

"I agree with you on that one."

"Well, I better go find them. It was nice seeing you! Tell Rose I said hello."

"Will do."

"Where is she? Where's Bella?" Emmett looked up to see Jasper striding towards him, panic was clear on his face.

"She's over there with..." Emmett pointed to the spot he'd last seen the girls, only they were no longer there.

"Hey, Em, I think Ally and I are going to head outside to get some fresh..." Rose came up behind him, without the girl in question.

"Where's Bella?" Emmett demanded, then turning to Jazz he asked, "Why, man? What the hell's going on?"

"He's here. Newton's fucking here!"

"Fuck! Rose, where the hell is she?"

"In the bathroom! I'll go get her. Someone should call the cops, tell them he's here..."

"No. Jazz, take the girls out to the car. Rose, call the police when you are in the car. I'll wait until she comes out and get her out of here. Where's he at? Did you see him?"

"Yeah, he was at the bar, I looked around for Bella and didn't see her so I came to find you."

"Alright, go. We'll be out soon. If I can get her out of here before she sees him, don't mention this right away. I'll tell her when we are on our way home."

"Em, baby, please be careful," Rose pleaded before reluctantly following Jasper and Alice out the door.

He walked away from them, over to the bathroom and remembered that Rosalie had his phone. Bella was standing by the door, talking to someone—he recognized the girl as Angela Weber. "Bells, we gotta go..." before he could finish, Mike fucking Newton himself stepped out from behind Ben, Angela's boyfriend. He was laughing about something but his face fell when he saw Bella, it turned to panic when he moved his gaze over to Emmett.

The fucker turned on his heels, ready to dart, Emmett couldn't let that happen. He grabbed Newton by the hood of his sweatshirt and pulled him backwards. Newton turned to face him, "Keep your fucking hands off me, Cullen," he warned menacingly.

"You're not going anywhere, asshole. The cops are already on their way. Might as well get comfortable," Emmett said innocently before punching him right in the face. Mike stumbled back but caught himself and lunged for Emmett. The two hit the ground, Mike on top, his fist slamming into Emmett's cheek bone.

"Stop it! Mike, please!" Angela cried out.

After another blow to Emmett's face, Mike whispered, "That's what your whore of a sister-in-law begged me to do a couple weeks ago."

Edward was stretched out on the hotel bed, eating Chinese, and watching some old movie that he could remember Esme watching when he was little. He kept glancing over at his phone, hoping to hear from Bella soon. He didn't want to call her but he just had a bad feeling about this whole night. He was just drifting off to sleep when his phone vibrated beside him. Groaning, he reached for it and was surprised to see Tanya's number flash on the id.

He debated whether or not to answer it. He'd specifically told her not to call when they'd had their discussion but what if something was wrong? He decided to let it go to voice mail and see if she left a message. If she did, and it was important, he'd call her back. He closed his eyes again as the phone vibrated again, this time telling him there was a message. Hitting 1, he typed his password in and listened to the recording.

"Edward, it's Tanya. Are you and Bella at Chrome? I saw her here and figured you were too but you have to leave. Mike Newton is here. I just saw him. Kate's calling the police as we speak. So,yeah, if you get this, get out. Be careful. I'll talk to you later."

His blood ran cold. Sitting straight up in bed, he dialed Emmett. _Please, don't let him see her! Please, __let her get out of there safely!_ The phone rang and rang. There was no answer, so he decided to try Bella.


	21. Chapter 21

**Thanks to all my reviewers and avid readers! I love you all! Cait, you always find the cutest things to wear and Beta my stories...I couldn't ask for a better 'sister'. So, on with it, and hold onto your seats my lovelies, this one's going to be a little bumpy :) Warning: This one is definitely on the darker side towards the middle and the rape will be remembered. **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: His blood ran cold. Sitting straight up in bed, he dialed Emmett. **_Please, don't let him see her! Please, let her get out of there safely!_** The phone rang and rang. There was no answer, s****o he decided to try Bella.**

**Chapter 21**

Edward paced his hotel room, phone to his ear, in total panic mode. He'd tried Emmett—twice, he tried Bella—three times, he'd tried Rosalie—it rang as if she was on the phone with someone else, he even tried Alice and Jasper who answered and said they were on their way to his parent's. Alice was having pains and Jasper wanted their dad to check her out. Now, he had no one left to call, no one to tell him what was going on. He did call the Seattle PD to report that Newton was at the club. There was one other person he could think to call, the person who had told him Newton was there in the first place.

Tanya answered on the first ring, "Where are you? Your brother is going apeshit on this guy!"

"Tanya? Is Bella okay? Can you still see her?"

"No, we're outside," he heard police sirens in the background, "Tanya, talk, what the hell's going on?"

"We saw that Mike was here so I called you to let you know. Kate called the police. Now, we're outside watching the show go down. Why aren't you here?"

"I'm in Chicago! Listen, I need you to look around. Do you see Bella anywhere?"

"No. I see Rosalie standing by their vehicle but Bella isn't there. I think she's still inside with Emmett. Rose is talking on the phone with someone," there was a shuffling sound, and then she said, "They're bringing Mike out now! No one's allowed in or out. Holy shit!"

"What? Tanya, tell me."

"Em's in cuffs too! They're leading him to a car...oh my, God, they're arresting him too!"

"FUCK! Do you see Bella? Is she alright?"

"No," Tanya began to sound distracted, she was saying something to someone in the background.

"She's NOT alright?"

"Huh? No, no, well I don't know. She's not coming out. I don't see her. Rose and Carmen are talking to the police, I think they're trying to get Emmett out of trouble."

"Alright, I can't believe I'm going to do this, but I need you to go back in and check on Bella. Actually, ask Kate to do it. Take your phone, don't hang up, give it to Kate and let her go in."

"I'm going with her! She's not going in there by herself! I'll behave," she said, sounding a little offended.

"Dammit, just do it. Go," On the other end he could hear another familiar siren, his heart about stopped "Is that an ambulance?"

"Yeah, Edward, they aren't letting anyone inside."

He listened, completely powerless. All he knew was that she was alone, in a club, where the man who raped her had just shown up. He'd fought with Emmett. Now, they were both being arrested. Bella couldn't even handle loud voices, let alone a bar fight. He knew she wasn't going to take this well. He listened to voices in the background. There was a lot of talking, he could hear Rose arguing with someone. "Let me in! She's my sister-in-law! Her husband is out of town! She has no family but me here!"

"Rose!" This time he heard Tanya's voice again, "Rosalie! Take this. It's Edward. Give it to her! They're not going to let me in."

He heard shuffling, a door open, and it became much quieter. He could hear heels clicking on the floor and soon after, heard murmurs of men. "Where is she?" Rose demanded, then, "Bella! Thank God! Are you okay? Bella, talk to me!"

"M'am, she won't speak to any of us. We think she's in shock."

"Was she harmed?" Rose demanded.

"No. We think she's just scared," the man said more sympathetically.

Edward's heart twisted. _I NEVER should have left her. I can't believe this is fucking happening! The fucking bastard took off for two weeks and just now appears—when I'm fucking out of town._

"Bella," he heard Rose ask quietly, "Hey sweetie, Edward's on the phone. Will you talk to him? I'm sure he's really scared right now. Just tell him you're safe and we can go home. I'll take you home."

"I think we are taking her to the hospital..."

"No. You aren't. I'm taking her back to our father-in-laws. He's a doctor. She's afraid of hospitals, it will make things worse for her," Rose interrupted. Edward realized how much he loved Rosalie at that moment. "Bella, talk to him. He's already on the phone!"

After a few more seconds, Rose got on the phone, "Edward? Are you still there?"

"Yeah, Rose, what's going on? Is she okay?"

"She's in shock. She's not talking to anyone. I tried to get her to talk to you. Look, I'm going to take her to mom and dad's, then I need to figure out what to do about Em. They fucking arrested him."

"On what charges?"

"Assault and battery! How fucking ridiculous, right? He was protecting Bells!"

"Rose, he's got a wife and a brother who are both lawyers. The guys at the station know that. I'm sure the charges will be dropped. Take Bella to dad, he'll know what to do. Just get her home. I'm going to call dad and tell him about Bella."

With Bella sound asleep upstairs, Emse, Carlisle, Rose, Jasper and Alice all sat around the large dining room table. It was almost two am. Rose couldn't post Emmett's bail until he was finished with the booking process. She'd given him some free legal advice when they were loading him into the police car and she prayed he wouldn't say anything stupid. Emmett always had a way of opening his big trap and getting himself in trouble.

"So, what's next?" Alice asked, quietly, rubbing her belly.

"I don't know," Esme replied, rubbing her face with her palms.

"Well, I think Bella's finally calmed down and asleep. I can't pick Emmett up yet. I still have Tanya's phone. Edward needs to be called..."

"He called six times already," Alice sighed, "we didn't know what to say to him. We don't want him to come home until we talk to Bella. You know how he gets, he's probably going to freak out."

"He's already freaking out," Rose argued, pulling out her own phone. Edward answered on the first ring. "Edward, it's Rose, we're all here—except Em and Bella. You're on speaker."

"What the hell happened tonight? Why haven't you called me back? Where's Bells? Is she safe?"

"Bella's going to be fine, Edward, she's asleep upstairs. We didn't call you because we were trying to calm her down and figure out what to do about Emmett. I ran over to the apartment to get her pills and Jasper and Alice are dealing with some baby issues."

"Is Alice alright?"

"Me and baby Whitlock are fine, Edward. Just Braxton hicks. I thought maybe it was labor but I was wrong," Alice said cheerfully, despite the crazy night they'd just had.

"What's going on with Em?"

"He's being booked. As soon as I can get down there, I'm posting his bail but I have this strange feeling that the assholes down there are taking their sweet ass time on purpose. Emmett's been in trouble with them before for fighting and the drug issue in high school. I don't know much else."

Everyone became quiet. Rose looked around anxiously at everyone. No one knew what to say. Finally, she added, "They got him, Edward. Mike's behind bars. He can't touch her. I know what happened tonight was horrific for her but Emmett didn't let him lay a finger on her. It could have been bad but it wasn't. She was just shocked to see him. I promise you, she's safe now."

Things got quiet again and she was just about to say goodnight when they heard Bella's crying upstairs...obviously, she hadn't fallen asleep yet. Esme stood up and walked towards the stairs, now Jasper spoke. "I'm going to say this because no one else wants to do it. You need to come home. She needs you. She doesn't want anyone else. You should be here."

"I'm about five steps ahead of ya, man. I've got to go, they're calling my flight."

"Have safe one, bro," Alice responded.

"Don't worry about tomorrow. I'll call my dad and let him know if he gives you shit about this, he'll never meet his grandkids."

"Are you..." Edward began to ask.

"No. Not yet, anyway. Just have a safe flight and we'll see you in a few hours.

Bella fell asleep to Esme rocking her gently. She wanted Edward but knew he was hours away. She would have to settle for his mom. She did eventually give into exhaustion.

_'Mike..." Bella half whispered, half whimpered, "why...why are you doing this to me?"_

"_Because you're a tease, sexy girl. I found it a little too easy to go after the ones I get completely trashed...this is so much more...exhilarating. We can do this the hard way or the easy way but God, I hope you pick the hard way. I love watching you fight."_

_Mike hauled her up off the floor and threw her into the bay window. On her way, she grabbed a large hard cover book sitting on the shelf and slammed it against the window, hoping to break it open so she could get out. It broke alright, glass scattered on the porch. She turned to crawl out but he grabbed her thigh and flipped her over so she was looking up at him. He held her down with such force, she thought his palm was going to go through her pelvis._

_He ripped her shirt off, followed by her bra, "We can do this in the window. I don't mind. Everyone can see us this way. They can see how disgusting you are. How much of a whore you are. Maybe that husband of yours will choose tonight to drive past. Let's give him a show, baby."_

_She started to scream, knowing this was actually going to happen. He was reaching for her jeans as she began to thrash against him. "Go ahead, and scream, baby. The windows open, let everyone hear what we're doing."_

_Bella fought for another couple of minutes but just learned it caused her to hurt even more. He held her down with even more force, pinching and hitting her, just to hear her cry. If she fought, he thrust into her harder. He had a knife and threatened to cut her, down there, if she didn't stop. Shaking and completely terrified, she stayed as still as possible. When he was done with her, he threw her away from the window and down onto the carpet. She passed out._

_She was out for about twenty minutes. When she came to, she realized she hurt too bad to stand up, so she stayed there until she knew Mike was definitely gone. Dragging her body across the floor, through the shattered glass, she reached up and knocked the phone off the table. Picking it up, she fought the urge to call Edward, instead she called his mom._

_Esme answered in a kind, almost hopeful voice, "Bells?"_

"_Hey..."she choked out, "I need..."_

"_Bella? What's wrong, sweetheart?" Bella couldn't talk, she could only cry. It was a loud sobbing cry. "Where are you? I'm coming to get you!"_

"_Home..." When they got off the phone, Bella crawled up the two stairs into the front foyer. She stood up awkwardly in order to turn the door knob. Hunched over, she made her way to the porch steps before dropping to her __knees. There was blood pouring onto the finished wood. There was blood all over her..._

Bella woke up with a loud gasp. Sitting straight up in bed, she rubbed at her skin, still able to see the blood from that night. She was sobbing and shaking and all she wanted was Edward. The familiar churning feeling hit her and she ran for the bathroom. For the second time in two weeks, she vomited in her in-law's bathroom. Reaching over, she turned the shower on, intending to get in but realized she didn't have the strength and decided to stay on the bathroom floor, letting the steam fill the room. It's warmth wrapped around her.

Her shaking hadn't stopped. She thought she saw a figure in the steam and panicked. Turning the water off, she pulled herself up and realized she was just being paranoid. No, not paranoid, scared. Completely fucking terrified. Flipping off the light switch, she headed downstairs to the kitchen, walking right over to the block of knives. She chose the biggest one there. As she looked at her reflection on the blade, she thought back to what Mike had said.

_Bella watched in horror as Mike and Emmett took turns throwing punches. Emmett's face was bleeding, Mike's mouth was gushing blood. Angela was screaming in vain for them to stop. She couldn't breathe, bringing her hands to her ears, she sat back against the wall. Sliding down she began to cry. Angela tried to help her but she screamed as soon as she made contact. Ben was trying to talk to Mike, to get him to stop. When Mike tried to stand up, Emmett pulled him back down. With Emmett on top of him now, his face smashed into the ground, Mike looked up at her with a bloodied mouth._

"_Hey, baby. Don't worry. I'll find you again. That husband of your has nothing on me. I know you're back together. I'll take care of that problem later," he grinned. Emmett brought his head up and slammed it back into the ground. Bell let out a silent scream as she heard bones crunch. She closed her eyes and thought of Edward, trying to block everything out. Before she knew it, a police officer was trying to get her attention. No one was around. She was alone. There was blood on the floor in front of her._

With shaking hands, Bella went to go back upstairs with her knife when she heard snoring in the living room. She snuck over and peeked in. Alice was in the recliner, probably too uncomfortable to lie down. Jasper was on the couch beside her, the source of the snoring. Bella didn't want to go back upstairs. She didn't feel safe. Grabbing a blanket off the back of the loveseat, she curled up, setting the knife on the arm of the loveseat beside her.

She woke up the next morning and realized she was now on the bigger couch. Reaching for the knife, she began to panic again when she saw it was nowhere near her. "Bella, shhhh, you're okay."

"Jasper..." it was the first thing Bella said since the club, "oh, God."

Alice pulled herself up off the recliner and waddled over. She rubbed Bella's arm soothingly as Jasper hugged her. "He's going to kill him. Mike's going to kill him!"

"Bella, Mike's not going to hurt anyone. He's in jail. Rosalie just left to pick up Emmett. Em's safe."

"No, Edward! He's going to kill Edward!"

"He's in jail! He can't hurt you or anyone else. I swear."

Bella turned to see Edward walking through the doorway, his large duffle bag swung over his shoulder. She began to cry again, scared that something could happen to him because of her, because she tried to push him away. Dropping the bag, he walked right over to her, Jasper backed away so he could get to her. She clung to him while at the same time crying, "You can't be here. Mike's coming. He's going to hurt you!"

Edward had finally gotten her to calm down and they explained to her for the hundredth time that Mike was in jail, where he would be, for a long, long time. He was safe. She was safe. It was finally over. He was sitting in the large bathtub with her, rubbing her arms and kissing her hair. "I never should have left you, Bells. I don't know what the hell I was thinking."

"I'm glad you're here now," Bella said, playing with the bubbles.

"Me too."

"So, it's over? After all this? Mike's behind bars for good?" Edward was silent a bit too long, she tried to turn to face him, "What? What is it?"

"He's behind bars for now but you do realize you're going to have to go to court over this. It's going to be pretty nasty. I also don't know that I can represent you..."

"Why?"

"I'm your husband. I don't know that it will be allowed. I'll have to talk to Trent."

"What if you can't? Can Rose?"

"I have someone in mind already...just let me ask around work. We'll have to figure this out soon and I'm also going to make sure no one tries to represents him from our firm."

"Do I know the person you have in mind?"

"You know of him, Collin O'Brien. He's good, Bella. Really fucking good."

"Well, let's deal with this later, I'm starting to get wrinkly."

Wrapped in a thick warm robe and slipper boots, Bella followed him down to where the rest of the family was all chatting. Emmett had made it home and she was shocked at first. He had a bandage over his cheek and the side of his face was swollen and purple. She knew he'd done it for her and it made her smile. She practically ran over to him and hugged him tightly to her. "Thanks, Em. I love you, big brother."

"Anytime, Bells," he said with a smirk. Bella turned back around and was surprised to see Tanya standing beside Rosalie. She was holding the phone Rose had given to her last night—the same one Edward had been on. When she turned to question him, she saw him returning Emmett's smirk as the two brother's clapped the others hand and then gave each other a hug. Edward was beaming, totally proud of his brother. "Fuck man, I'm regretting that I wasn't there to help you."

"Wasn't needed," Emmett said, shrugging, "I only let him do this so he wouldn't run and I could press charges against him too. Plus, now me and Bells match."

In spite of everything, she found herself laughing and Edward wrapped his arms around her. She was tired of fighting with him about Tanya. Not wanting to make a scene, she pushed Tanya aside in her mind and kept her mouth shut. Until Edward turned towards her...

"Tan, thanks. I probably wouldn't have even known about it being that my family probably would have decided not to tell me," he said, only half joking.

"Don't worry about it. You'd do the same for me. It would hurt you if something happened to her."

"Well, thanks, and tell Kate I said so too."

"Will do. Well, I guess I should head out..." she pointed behind her with her thumbs.

"Yeah..." he said awkwardly.

She turned to walk away and Rose stepped forward to walk her out. When they were gone she looked at Edward. "Why were you on her phone," she asked, more out of curiosity than anything.

"She called to warn me Newton was there. She saw you and assumed I was with you. Basically, she was just warning me and when I couldn't get ahold of anyone, I called her back to see if you were safe. She was waiting outside with Kate. It was the longest five minute phone conversation I've ever had. She was the only one I could get a hold of. I asked her to check on you and they wouldn't let her in so she handed her phone off to Rose."

"Oh."

"Come on, let's go home, angel," Edward said, kissing her forehead. His family had scattered around the house and Emmett and Rose were getting ready to leave too. "Since I'm now off this weekend, maybe we can get the house fixed up. I can call the contractor..."

"No! I mean...not yet."

"Okay," Edward said, slowly, raising an eyebrow. "Let's just go back to the apartment then. I think we could both use some serious cuddling and sleep."

"Deal," Bella said with a smile. Breathing a sigh of relief, she followed him towards the front door. She had no idea how to tell him she didn't want to go back to that house. At least, she knew she couldn't live there, not again. Not now, that she could remember what happened with Mike. Edward was going to be devastated.

For now, she reveled in having him back, though she still felt guilty. It amazed her how much she could be comforted by him just _being_ there. Now, he had on thick gray sweatpants, and an old hockey t-shirt. She was still in her robe with just a pair of his boxers and a cami underneath. She left her boots on as they made their way out to the Vanquish. Settling in, Bella slept the whole drive home.

**Hope you found this one a little more exciting than the last couple chappies! Let me know what you think and don't worry, there will always be more drama ;) I'm kind of feelin'a lemon but I'm not very good at writing them, so who the heck knows... Until next time, LP xo**


	22. Chapter 22

**I never thought this story would reach to this many people in so many different countries...very cool! I'm really bogged down with school right now but I love, love, love hearing from you and I'm sorry I didn't get to review back...I am going to try really, really hard to do so from now on. It just didn't happen this week. Just remember, I'm posting these bad boys about every other day...that's a lot of time taken since I don't have anything written ahead of time. I start fresh every night and hope to have it done for the next day...have faith! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "Deal," Bella said with a smile. Breathing a sigh of relief, she followed him towards the front door. She had no idea how to tell him she didn't want to go back to that house. At least, she knew she couldn't live there, not again. Not now, that she could remember what happened with Mike. Edward was going to be devastated.**

**Chapter 22**

"So, do you remember Sam? From Forks?" Bella asked Edward as they lay in bed the next morning.

"Sort of. He's Emily's husband, right?"

"Yeah. They want us to come down and visit. I guess Emily is throwing a big party for him."

"Who's 'they'?"

"My dad, Billy, Jake, Emily, and I'd like to meet Lily. Emily's daughter."

"I guess you could go...I mean if you want to..."

"I do...but I was kind of hoping...that maybe, you know, we could go together."

"Bella, I tried to call Angela a few days ago when I was looking for Mike..."

"You were looking for Mike?" She was truly surprised, he'd never mentioned it to her.

"Yeah, but anyway, Angela kind of went off on me. A lot of people hate me for what I did to you. I know...I don't blame them...but I don't think it's a good idea for me to go down there right now."

"Oh. Well, I'm not going unless you go so I guess it's a no."

"Bella, Mike is in jail. He's not going to hurt you. You don't need a bodyguard twenty-four/seven."

She pulled away from him, in total disbelief that he'd just said that to her. He drove all the way from Chicago to do just that. Now, she was being silly for not wanting to go hours away from him? "You know what, Edward? You're right. I don't need a body guard. I need you. My husband."

She stood up and grabbed clean clothes before going into the bathroom and slamming the door—as loudly as she could. Standing in front of the mirror, Bella sighed and shook her head. _Am I really being too clingy? God, what if he decides to leave me this time? I would literally end up in a straight jacket._

There was a knock on the door, followed by the jiggling of the door handle. She ignored it and stayed quiet, sitting down on the side of the bath tub. "Bella? Hey, I didn't mean that the way you took it! If you want to go to Forks, you can't let Mike Newton stop you! He's in jail and hopefully will be for a long, long time. I just meant that you really don't need someone with you all the time now. If you want someone with you, it can be arranged. I just hate to see you putting your life on hold for this asshole.

She stood up and swung the door open, "I don't want someone with me at all times. I want you with me whenever it's possible! As much as you hate to admit it, Jake, Billy, everyone in Forks...they're like my family. I heard someone say before that family is what you make it. We might not be blood related but I love them. I love you. Your family here and my family there are both incredibly important to me. If they want to get on their high horses and judge you then that's a shame. They know damn well I messed up too. What are they going to do when we have a baby? Never speak to his or her father? Bullshit. They're going to have to learn to deal with it."

"You really want a baby?" Edward asked, his face lighting up.

Bella realized what she said and blushed, "Yeah, I do," she said quietly.

"Alright, I'll make a deal with you. We'll go down to Forks the day of the party. If things go well, we'll stay the night. If things don't go so well, we come home."

"Yeah, sounds good. Under one condition."

"What?"

"We aren't stopping at any strip clubs on the way there or the way back," she said with a smirk.

"You're hilarious, Bells," he said dryly, rolling his eyes.

After a long, hot shower together, they cuddled up on the couch. She had a book and he had his laptop. Just like the old days. About an hour later, she looked over at him and smiled. "Whatch workin' on?"

"A case Natalia sent me to go over."

"So nothing ever happened between the two of you? Ever.?

"Never. Like I said, she tried once, and I had Rose speak to her. Why?"

"She's just really, really pretty and you're...really, really pretty."

"You're prettier. Bells, please let this go."

"Fine. What's on the agenda for tonight?"

"Well, I was sort of thinking we could go visit Emmett and Rose. Maybe take them dinner? I kind of owe them one."

"I'd like that. Your brother is a great guy."

"Don't I know it," he said with a smile, "I thought we could talk to him about the house. Maybe we can turn it into a project if you don't want contractors and strangers working on it."

"I...um...yeah. That's fine."

"What's wrong? Talk to me. Don't start shutting down again."

"You mean like I did when you slept with a stripper?" Even Bella cringed, she couldn't believe she'd just said that, obviously, he couldn't either.

"Really? You want to do this? Again?" He shook his head and went back to working on his computer.

"No. I don't. I'm sorry," tears were starting to form, she hadn't meant to say that. She was avoiding what she really needed to tell him.

"Then why, Bella?" he asked her, sounding tired.

"I don't...I don't want to go back," Bella whispered, not looking at him.

"We've already been back there. You handled it fine."

"Not without you. I can't."

"Then we'll sell," he said it as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

Her head snapped up, "Just like that? We're just going to sell?"

"It's just a house. I agree that a lot of bad things happened there. Just remember there were as many good things, too. It was our first house we bought together. Where we conceived our son. Think of all the parties we had there. Think of the entertainment room—of you stretched out listening to me play while you read a book. I miss that, Bells."

"I do too but think of all the bad things that happened there. My fall in the bathroom...and what happened after. All the fights we had over the nursery. What happened to me. I just feel safe here. With you. I'm comfortable here."

He looked around, glancing at the frames she'd put up on the walls, filled with pictures of family and friends. The fresh flower bouquet he'd sent her was on the big kitchen table. Unlike the kitchen from two weeks ago, this one actually had food in it that was more elaborate than his college-student-cold- pizza. Even Jasper Cat was in the kitchen, happily smacking one of Bella's hair ties around. He realized he was comfortable there, too.

"Edward, let's stay. Let's just stay here," Bella asked, scooting closer to him.

"You realize if kids come along, we'll need somewhere bigger...and I can't part with pap's piano...and you can't do without your library. How many books have you read in the past two weeks anyway?" He motioned to the stack on the coffee table to prove his point.

"Fine. We'll figure...something...out..."

Her face was inches from his and he realized he was having trouble focusing on the discussion at hand.

"What are we...what..." Bella climbed onto his lap and gently licked his bottom lip. He let her take control, not wanting to overwhelm her like the other morning. Remembering what it was like, before she was pregnant, what they used to do...He'd have total control over her and loved it. Sex was the only time she would let him be the egotistical bastard that he loved to be—any other time she had control—and he knew it, though he'd never admit that to her.

Her hand traveling to the waistband of his sweatpants bringing him back to reality. Grinding against him, she gently bit his lip, running her fingers through his hair. He tilted his head back and his wife took advantage of his exposed neck. He moaned and put his hands on both sides of her slim waist, lifting her up and carrying her to the bedroom.

The image of her lying on his bed, her hair across his pillow, her hand up above her head, had been the pictured he'd fallen asleep to for the past year. Now, this was real. He'd gotten her back and he couldn't fucking believe it. She pulled his shirt off as he opened the robe she was still wearing. She arched up off the bed, pulling off the boxers she was wearing, then tried to pull his off. After some maneuvering, he was finally feeling skin on skin contact.

"Bella, are you sure?" He forced his head to clear long enough to ask her.

"Shut up, Cullen," she said, pulling him down to her, wrapping her legs around his waist. She bit her lip as he slid into her.

"Isabella!" he cried out, quickening his pace. He could feel her nails scratching down his back, her body arching into his as she cried out. He could feel her tighten and he couldn't hold back, letting himself release, he brought his hand up. Absently, putting his hand in her hair and wrapping it around his wrist so that he could pull her mouth towards him. What happened next shocked the hell out of him.

"Haven..." it came out of her mouth as a whisper and he wondered if he'd heard it right when she said it louder this time, "Haven!"

Immediately pulling out of her, he let go of her hair, not knowing that to do. Of all the crazy shit they had pulled during sex, NEVER had she safe worded. Never. He began to wonder what he'd done when Bella pulled the covers up around herself and looked away.

"Bella...what happened? What did I do..." he never heard her reasoning because her phone began to ring on the bed stand.

She answered it, obviously flustered, "Hello? Are you drunk? Where are you? Alright. Stay there, I'm coming to get you," she said as she hung up.

"We have to go back to the house...it's Jake. I think he's drunk."

They were halfway to the house when Bella realized that Jake didn't know she and Edward were back together. She also didn't know how well he was going to take that news. Wrapped up in everything with Edward, counseling, and Mike, poor Jake had gotten pushed to the side. She hadn't spoken to him since the day he'd called her when she and Edward were still in bed together—the morning after everything with Mike had started.

"He doesn't know," Bella said, looking at Edward.

"Know what?" Edward asked, obviously not wanting to spend his Saturday going to pick up a drunk Jake.

"That we're...back together," Bella said, glancing sideways at him.

"So?" Edward was clearly annoyed.

"Well, it's just that he seems really upset already..."

"Oh, great, so now you want to lie to him. Act like we hate each other? Really, Bella?"

"No. I mean, just maybe we won't tell him right away..."

"Whatever, he's your friend. Not mine. You want to lie go right on ahead."

They were pulling up to the house now and she saw him sitting outside. He was on the porch in a rocking chair, drinking a beer. When the approached, he looked up at them and it was no secret that he was completely trashed. "Jesus, Jake, what the hell happened?"

"Leah...she left me," he slurred, taking another drink from his beer.

"Well...what did you do?" Bella asked calmly, leaning against the railing of the porch, still facing him.

"I didn't fucking do anything!" he practically yelled, causing Edward to take a step closer to Bella. "She's fucking Paul."

"Jake...wow," she truly didn't know what to say. He and Leah had always seemed so happy together.

"Yeah, isn't it fucking wonderful, Bells? I wanted to kill him. I want to kill him. So I left and I didn't know where else to go."

"We don't live here right now...anymore. Why don't you come back with us and you can sober up and talk."

The ride to the apartment was awkward. Edward took Jake's beer and dumped it into the bushes before getting into the car. There was little protest from Jake and she figured he was too out of it to care. When they finally arrived at the apartment, Bella led him over to the couch while Edward sat down across from them.

There was a glass of wine on the coffee table from earlier that day and Jake picked it up. "No, easy, you've had enough for one night...or year..."

Jake went for the glass again and Edward said in an irritated tone, "Bella, just drink the rest, there's like a half of a glass there."

She put it to her lips but the second the alcohol touched her tongue she pulled it away. For the past year, every time she went to drink something with alcohol in it, she thought of the baby. Not being able to have alcohol had become a habit and she used to laugh at herself when she thought of it...months after losing the baby. Now, though, another thought occurred to her. Edward and Jake must have both noticed her discomfort because her husband looked at her funny while her friend blurted, "What's wrong with you?"

"I...Edward, here...I don't want to finish it," Bella asked, silently pleading with him to take the glass and just get rid of it.

"Bella, just finish it," Edward said again and this time she wanted to get up and smack him in the head. She didn't expect him to catch on to what she was thinking but at least not argue about it with her. No such luck. "Bella, what's wrong? You know I don't like wine..."

"Edward. I can't drink because we...without...you know..." she shook her head in the direction of the bedroom.

Bella watched as a look of understanding finally him. Then he said what she had prayed he wouldn't in front of Jake, "I thought you were on the pill!"

"What pill," Jake asked, squinting at her, then in a defeated tone, "Oh, never mind. You two are back together. Fuck. My. Life."

"I highly doubt if this did...happen...that it would affect it. I mean there's hardly a few mouthfuls left of wine." He didn't push her about it but Jacob did.

"You're fucking him now?" Jacob asked in his drunken stupor. "You're getting a divorce!"

Bella glanced at Edward who looked at her expectantly, wanting to know what she would say. Taking a deep breath, she said, "We aren't getting a divorce. Jake, we're getting back together...we _are_ back together. "Turning her attention to her husband she said, "I'm not going to drink it. I know it probably won't happen this quickly but I don't want to take the chance. You of all people should understand that. I won't even bring it up unless in a month or so I find out that I am but you should respect that!"

"I don't get it," Jake asked, confused.

Edward ignored him, "I'm sorry. I just wish you would have said something earlier like 'Hey, I'm the one who doesn't want a kid, maybe we should use a condom.'

"I'm not on the pill because I wasn't having sex with anyone, at all, while we were separated. Would you have condoms here? Why would that be Edward?"

"Yeah, Edward, why would that be?" Jake asked crossing his arms with an amused expression on his face.

They ignored him again. "You're the one who didn't even want to tell someone you consider one of your best friends that we were even back together. Excuse me for being a little worried about bringing a child into this marriage."

"Tell who? What friend" Jake put in, cocking his head and peering at her.

"How dare you, Edward Cullen! What? Now I'm not good enough to have a baby with? Am I too damaged for you? Is that it? That's the only reason you're with me, isn't it? It's pity. Well, fuck you."

"Yeah! Fuck you!" Jake slurred, giggling a little.

This time, they both turned to him, "Would you shut up for ten seconds?" Bella cried before turning back to Edward.

She could see that he was angry. She could even see that he was a little hurt. He was right, though. Why would she try to keep this from Jake? If Edward had lied to Tanya about the two of them being together, she would have flipped shit and she knew it. "Edward..."

"I'm going to mom and dads. I need to cool off. You can babysit the drunk," he said, grabbing his coat, keys and phone.

"Wait," Bella called after him, he turned towards her expectantly, "when will you be back? You'll come back before tonight, right?"

"Probably," was all he said before walking out the door.

Bella plopped back down onto the couch. She had no idea she could regret saying so many things in such a small amount of time. "Forget him, Bells," Jake smiled a crooked grin, grabbing the wine off the table and downing it. She didn't even fight with him about it, just sighed and put her head in her hands.

"Uh-oh," Esme said when she saw him walk into the kitchen.

"Hey, mom," Edward sighed, sitting at the table and shaking his head.

"Problems with Bella?"

"Just a stupid fight...the whole thing is stupid. Jake's there and I just couldn't stay any longer. She wanted to keep our getting back together from him. I mean, seriously? Then she gets all worried about being pregnant, which is completely ridiculous! It just happened today and now she's worried about it and I just don't think it's a good idea to have a..." he stopped when he realized she was gaping at him. _Did I really just say all of that to my mother?_

"Bella's pregnant?"

"No!" he said, exasperated, "She's worried about drinking in case she does get pregnant."

"So why are you angry with her?" Esme was clearly not following. _This __really is the dumbest fucking fight I've had with her._

"I don't know! I just am."

"Edward, that's not good enough. You can't just get mad for no reason. Do you want a baby?"

"Yes! I just don't know if..."

"Did you do something with her that could cause you two to have a baby?" she asked, peering down at him.

"Yes," he cringed. _I should have tried to find dad. Could this be __any more__ awkward?_

"Well, son, you're just going to have to deal with the consequences. You aren't in high school anymore, Edward. You are married. To be honest, I think that you might be scared. You're just as afraid as she is to lose another. That doesn't give you a 'run away from the situation' card."

"Mom, we don't even know that she's pregnant! This is ridiculous! It was a stupid fucking fight! If I got her pregnant, I wouldn't just run..."

"Then why are you here?" Esme argued.

"Because...because Jake's there," Edward relented.

"You need to go back, Edward. That's your wife. That's your home. Don't give Jake the benefit. You can't start this running crap. If you want to work things out with her, taking off cannot be your first reaction when things get bad."

"I know," he sighed, rubbing his face with his hands.

"There, now that I played 'bad mom', have a cookie and think about how to make this better. I love you. I just don't want to see you mess things up because you are scared of something that you know you want. If she is pregnant..."

"She's not pregnant! It's not possible, not yet anyway..."

"Alright. Fine. We'll drop the subject. Now, eat your cookie and get back to that wife of yours."

He'd driven over to the house, wanting to measure the piano to see where they could store it, then drove around for a little while. The actual problem wasn't the slim chance she was going to get pregnant...it was that Jacob fucking Black was back. It more than pissed him off. He'd said goodbye to Tanya. Yeah, she was a manipulative bitch but she had been a damn good friend to him. When the sun started to go down, he finally decided to go home.

He intended to apologize to Bella, try to pretend Jacob wasn't there, and when they had privacy tell her he thought they were both over reacting about the unprotected sex. When Jacob left, he'd talk to her about how much it bothered him Jacob was still that close to her. When he opened the door, the apartment was dark. They weren't in the living room or kitchen and he made his way back to the bedroom. His heart was in his throat as he thought of what he might end up witnessing. Then, he shook his head, reminding himself that it wasn't something Bella would do. He pushed the door open and to his relief, they were nowhere to be found.

Pulling out his phone, he called her and she answered, "Where the hell are you?"

"I left you a note. We're at Angela's."

"When are you coming home?"

"I don't know," she said curtly.

"Are you coming home sometime tonight?" he asked, totally annoyed.

"Probably." Then, she hung up on him. "_Touche__",_he muttered under his breath. It was only about eight o'clock and he hadn't eaten dinner yet. Grabbing his phone, he called his brother.

"What's up, bro?" Em's voice boomed over the phone.

"Bella's fucking out with Jake," Edward blurted.

He heard Emmett sigh on the other end of the phone, "Alright, where are you at?"

"The apartment."

"I'm on my way. It's Saturday night. We're going out. Rose is over at Carmen's looking at wedding pictures. I'll pick you up."

"Sounds like a plan."

**Sorry about the ridiculously long a/n...but I still have more to add ;) Shout out to Cait! I realized that she and I are using two different word processors so if you notice weird spacing that's probably why. Sorry! Also, I have two more days left with fourth grade and things are INSANE right now. I hope to update as often as I have it but I have to pretend to be responsible for the next couple days ;) Review and tell me what you think! I also want to make a quick 'best wishes' to my girls heading out to student teach in New Zealand! Have a safe trip and enjoy the opportunity! Next update might be tomorrow...until then, LP xoxoxoxo**


	23. Chapter 23

**I didn't think this chapter was going to happen tonight but I proved myself wrong :) I have almost ninety reviews and would love to hit 100 ;) Big thanks to Cait, as always! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "I'm on my way. It's Saturday night. We're going out. Rose is over at Carmen's looking at wedding pictures. I'll pick you up."**

**Chapter 23**

He could feel the music pumping underneath his feet as he looked at his phone for the millionth time. "Dude, come on, put the phone down and try to relax!" his brother yelled.

"I just want to make sure she's okay..."

"If she isn't, she'll call. You said she hung up on you before. Obviously, she wants some space. I can't believe that you're this okay with her taking off with Jake, though."

"I'm not," Edward said, taking a long pull of his beer, "what am I supposed to do, Em? Show up at Angela's and make a big scene? That's not going to get us anywhere."

"Yeah but think about it. You cheated with Tanya—which was bad. She didn't sleep with Jake but has this weird intimately, personal friendship with him. I mean, yeah, physically it's different but I think a person could easily have meaningless sex...you don't have meaningless heart to hearts and private conversations. You have every right to argue this point and I think you should."

"You should have been a lawyer..." Edward said with a smirk.

"Yeah, well, if this engineering gig doesn't work out, I'll have something to fall back on," he shot back.

"There _are_ perks to my job...you'd get arrested a lot less."

"Probably not," Emmett half-joked, "I love how those pricks act down at the station. All 'you-are-nothing-but-a-piece-of-shit' but the second Rose walks in, they start drooling. I fucking love walking out of that damn place with her..."

"I'm glad you two can have those bonding moments," laughed Edward.

"There's other perks from what I hear, too. A perk involving a very 'perky' secretary," Emmett wagged his eyebrows.

"You know her?" Edward asked, picking at the label on his beer bottle.

"Yeah, I had the pleasure of meeting her once. She was out for a girl's night with Rose and ended up on our couch. Damn, man. The girl is fucking hot. I gotta give you props for turning her down, I know you had Rose talk to her."

"I didn't need to deal with a relationship. Between Bella and Tanya, I had my hands full already," Edward said, running his hand through his hair.

"Yeah, it's not exactly like Tanya isn't gorgeous, either."

Edward rolled his eyes, "I'm going to plead the fifth on that one. Can we change the subject?"

"Fine. I need another beer. Want one?"

Watching Emmett walk away, Edward picked up his phone and sent his wife a text. "I love you. Please call me when you are heading home. I'm with Em."

He snorted when he looked up and saw Emmett talking on the phone. _Asshole's been giving me shit all night about my damn phone. _His brother snapped his phone shut and headed over, a beer in each hand.

"Now who's guilty of being whipped?" Edward ask, raising his eyebrows.

"Shut up. Rose and the girls are coming out for awhile."

"The girls? Define 'the girls'."

"Rose, Carmen, Kate, and I don't know...probably Tanya..."

"Awesome. This is just what I need."

"I've already mentioned to Rose to watch it with her. I understand her, Carmen, and Kate have that whole 'sorority sister' thing going on but that doesn't mean Tanya needs to be brought to all the functions. I can't very well tell Rose she can't bring her. Carmen is her sister and this is a public place. Besides, if you could just keep your dick in your pants, you wouldn't have anything to worry."

Edward gave him a lethal glare and grabbed his beer bottle. A few minutes later, his sister-in-law, her two best friends, and Tanya walked through the door. Each one of them were dressed to impress and were already catching the attention of other patrons. When Rose walked over to his brother and kissed him dead on the lips, Edward could almost see the entire room let out a defeated sigh.

After hello's were exchanged, the girls took off for the bar and then hit the dance floor. "I miss this," Emmett said wistfully.

"What?"

"Coming to dance and have fun. Drinking and watching the girls do their thing. Stepping in for a dance here and there to keep the other guys away from them. God, Bella loved to dance. Rose used to complain that she couldn't keep up with her and Ally."

"Now look at us. Your woman is out there shaking it while Ally is home barely able to waddle and Bella is off at a house party with another man."

"It is strange thinking of Ally this way. She was always so, so hyper. Mom and dad used to have to let her sprint around the house before bedtime so she'd tire herself out...and she still wouldn't sleep. Poor Jazz. Let's hope this little one is as calm as he is. I don't know how he has the energy to deal with Ally let alone a new baby."

"Remember the guy weekends you, me and Jazz used to take? I miss those, too," Edward said, wistfully.

"We should do it again! It would be fun! We could go down to the lakehouse for a weekend!"

He shifted in his seat, picking at his beer bottle again, "I can't leave Bells right now. As pissed off as I am, she really does need me to be there. Besides, it's not like Jazz can just take off. Ally can go any day."

"True story," Emmett said, his bubble busted. "Oh, boy. Looks like I'm going to have to go make sure a couple creepers realize Rose is mine. I can see them eying her up."

He gestured to the dance floor, "Don't let me stop you..."

Just then, he saw some guy he didn't recognize come right up behind Tanya. Emmett was making his way over but being Emmett, he walked right to Rose and started dancing. Edward watched the group for a few minutes and sipped his beer. Still no text from Bella. Looking back up, he saw the panicked look on Tanya's face. The creep was right against her backside, his hands working their way up and down her top. Emmett, Rose, and Carmen were walking towards the bar and Kate was talking to someone on the other side of the room.

Tanya seemed to be trying to get Carmen's attention but to no avail. This guy was obviously bothering her, she couldn't have made that more obvious. When he spun her around forcefully and tried to kiss her, Edward watch Tanya try to push him away. Her attempt at this failed epically. Sighing, he stalked over and put his arm between their bodies. "Fuck off, man. She's not interested."

The guy looked shocked at first, then annoyed. "Who the fuck are you? She doesn't have a ring on her finger."

"It's none of your fucking business who I am. Let her go," he said it with as much venom in his voice as possible.

Obviously, the guy had a little too much to drink. He tried to punch Edward, who stepped back, and the guy nearly fell over. It was enough for people to move away from them and watch—ready for a fight. In seconds, Emmett was behind him. "What's going on here, man?" Emmett asked, obviously trying to intimidate the man.

"This asshole was messing with Tanya," Edward sneered.

The man looked between Edward and Emmett, panic clear on his face. If he'd thought he could take Edward, he knew he couldn't take both of the brothers. "I...I don't want no trouble," the man said nervously, palms out.

"Then go. Get the fuck out of here," Emmett nodded towards the door.

Edward watched the man leave and heard heals behind him, followed by Rosalie's voice, "Alright, you two. No one gets arrested tonight. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah," Emmett said, taking a beer from her.

Turning to go back to the table, Edward felt someone grab his arm, "Hey! Thank you."

"No problem. No one deserves to be treated like that."

"I'm sorry, Edward. About the way things happened with us..."

"Don't do this to yourself, Tan. Just stop. It's not worth it anymore. What happened, happened. I'm married and I won't hurt her again."

She rolled her eyes, "Maybe not but she's still going to hurt you."

"I'll take my chances," Edward said before turning again.

An hour later, everyone was ready to leave. He still hadn't heard anything back from Bella and had pretty much given up. It wasn't like her to be out so late and he assumed she went home long ago without letting him know. "Yeah, Em, you can barely _hold_ your car keys let along _drive_ a car. We came with Kate, I'll just drive you and Edward home in our car."

"Sounds good to me," Edward smiled, pulling his coat on.

Kate was now at the bar, making out with the guy she had been talking to earlier. "Why don't you drop Tan and I off at home on the way. Kate seems rather content at the moment. I'd hate to bug her," Carmen laughed.

Rose pulled out her phone and sent a text. Seconds later, Kate broke the kiss long enough to look at her phone and give a thumbs-up. "Alright, she doesn't think he's a serial killer and she knows we're leaving. Let's head out."

The ride home was rather humorous. Emmett kept putting the window up and down to the point that Rose had to child-lock it, they had to stop once for Carmen to pee at a local gas station, and Edward was trying his hardest to avoid Tanya. Carmen sat between them on the backseat and he prayed he wouldn't end up with throw up on himself—Carmen was a little green.

They manage to pull up outside of his building, vomit free. Bella's Volvo was parked in the garage. Furious that she hadn't bothered to text him, he headed towards the elevators. Once inside, his phone rang once but then lost service. Now, standing in front of the apartment door, he unlocked it and saw who had called—Rose. He hit send.

"Hey, you are _never_ going to guess what just fucking happened! I hit a car! It was a total fender bender but can you maybe let us hang out there until the police get here?"

"Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah but Em's freaking out."

"Okay, yeah, come on up."

He walked through the place, looking for Bella. She was curled in a ball, sleeping in bed. Jake, surprisingly, was nowhere to be found. He didn't worry too much about it, just covered Bella up and made sure she wasn't trembling. Satisfied that she was okay, he walked back out in time for the group to come through the door.

"Rose hit a fucking car!" Emmett's voice boomed.

"Shhhh, Bella's asleep."

"Oh, sorry!" Emmett said loudly.

Rose rolled her eyes and told him the police should be there within fifteen minutes. If not, she was calling and bitching them out. "Anyone want anything? Beer, wine, soda, water..."

"I think waters will come in handy for everyone right now," Rose said, walking into the small kitchen with him. The others followed, seeming like they weren't sure of what to do. They stood around talking for a few minutes and Rose began to laugh.

"Of course, the Cullen brothers had to almost pick a fight with that strange guy!" Rose said, rolling her eyes.

"What?" Carmen asked, looking between Edward and Emmett.

"Yeah," Rose went on, "some guy tried to mess with your sister. Our boys, here, stopped it." 

"Chivalry isn't dead!" Carmen cheered jokingly.

"Oh, believe me, it's dead," responded Rose in a dry voice.

The bathroom was connected to their bedroom and had two different doors. Closing the one for the bedroom, he was about to turn around when he heard a quiet whimpering sound. He immediately opened the door back up and peered inside the room. Bella's form was still in a ball on the bed but he couldn't tell if she was asleep or not. About to go to her, there was a loud knock on the front door and he reluctantly went to go see who it was.

A cop from the Seattle PD was at his doorstep when he went back out. "Show me which one," he said, all business. Everyone said small goodbyes as they followed the man out and down to the parking garage. He turned around to see Bella standing in the doorway, tears in her eyes and arms over her chest.

Bella had woken up to a loud noise and then her husband telling someone to be quiet because she was sleeping. She lay there, listening as she heard more voices. She could make out Rose's voice and there was another girl...it sounded familiar. Listening as best she could, she heard Rose say that Edward and Emmett had defended the stranger's sister. Then it clicked. Carmen Denali was the other person. Bella saw red. _He was out with Tanya?_

It hurt to think he'd lie to her but he _had_ promised to get Tanya to back off. He shouldn't be out playing her night in shining armor. Tears fell and Bella found herself crying. She was so tired of getting hurt, being hurt, all of it. She didn't want to go out there and make a scene. Hearing the bathroom light click on, she tried to stifle her crying but figured she was unsuccessful when the door opened up. A loud knock to their front door made her jump. As soon as the door to the bedroom closed again, Bella got up and decided to make an appearance.

She peered out to see Edward walking toward the group, a police officer at the door, and Tanya fucking Denali herself. The cop shot Emmett a look, obviously remembering him and eventually everyone but Edward left. When he saw her, he froze. After regaining composure, he walked back towards her.

"You brought her back here?" Bella whispered, obviously hurt.

"Bells...it's not how this looks," Edward said, still coming closer.

"Oh, so you didn't bring her back to our home? What? She was a figment of my imagination? I'm not the one who's drunk. You smell like beer and cigarettes."

"I had three all night and I was sitting in a bar—that tends to happen. Tanya was here and so were Rose, Emmett, and Carmen. Bella, it's not like I was trying to fuck her on the couch!"

"Oh, but you can be her night in shining armor, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I heard what you and Em did tonight! Is that why the cop showed up? I'm so glad you'd be willing to get in trouble with the law for her! You aren't even supposed to be talking!"

"Some guy was giving her a hard time. Em and I asked him to back off. End of story! The cop is here because my sister-in-law had a fender bender leaving the parking garage. They were waiting until the police showed up. I'm sorry that I was with Tanya. I get it. I'll remember next time that when you're out with your wonderful Jake, I can't even be in the same room with her."

"Jake and I are different. Don't even bring that up."

"Your right. You and Jake are different. You're even fucking closer to him than I am to Tanya!"

"What you and Tanya did..."

"HAPPENED DURING YOU WANTING TO DIVORCE ME!" Edward was yelling now, causing Bella to flinch and back up. He wasn't going to run to her and make sure she was okay. Not anymore. Not until she admitted she was being ridiculous. Instead, he made himself less threatening by sitting down on the arm of the couch. He ran his fingers through his hair, before finally saying, "I'm tired Bella. I've been pretty calm about Jacob being around you. I've kept my mouth shut even though it bothers me to no end and even though I told an old friend goodbye for you.

"He shows up drunk. You go off to his rescue. We come back here. You don't want to tell him we're together. We fight and I go off to calm down and you go to a party with him. If you wanted me home with YOU I would have come back. Even when I was angry. If you would have called and said you needed me I would have been here in a heartbeat. YOU could have come out with us. Hell, I came home at eight. The reason I went out was because I'm tired to fucking being alone! I get it. You need me when you're scared, you need me when you're sad, you need me when it's convenient for you! What about me? Why should you get to pick and choose when to act like you have a husband? That's not how this works, Bella."

She didn't say anything, just stood there quietly, head down. He waited, expecting her to say something...yell, scream...anything was better than the silence. After another minute and still nothing, he looked at her and said, "Yeah. Go ahead, shut down again. I'm glad you will talk to me when you have something to yell at me for. While we talk about yelling at me, I am sick and fucking tired of you bringing this up over over again about Tanya. I love you more than I love her. I've told you that a trillion times. If you keep doing this, it's going to push me away. I don't want to fight anymore about this...or about us...or about anything."

She looked up at him and shook her head, "So in other words...this isn't worth your energy?"

He gaped at her and cocked his head, "I've put a year's worth of energy into this, Isabella. If I hadn't you would be back to Isabella Swan. You gave up a long time ago. I'm not doing it anymore. You love me, you prove it. I'm seriously ten steps away from leaving for good."

"No, please don't," she sounded like a little kid, he waited for her to stomp her foot.

"Why not? Leah and Jake are over. Perfect fucking timing, right?"

"Edward, Jake's gone. He tried to kiss me after you left..."

"He what?"

"You heard me. I didn't want to be here alone with him so we went over to Angela's. I couldn't leave him to fend for himself, he was totally trashed. You saw him. We had dinner there and he sobered up enough for us to talk. I told him after today that he couldn't keep doing this. Angela came down to visit in Forks a few times so he knows her and he's staying there tonight and driving home tomorrow. You'll only have to see him when we go to Forks for visits and even then, he won't be at Charlie's."

Edward was truly surprised by this. He could see the pain on her face as she told him this. "It hurts, doesn't it?" He asked, sympathetically.

"Yeah."

"Come here, Angel," he held his arms out to her and she walked over. When she was in his lap, he tipped them backwards so they were half laying on the couch. "So, let's talk about the possibility of having another baby on the way sometime soon. I know you aren't pregnant yet but it's possible it will happen. Are you ready to deal with another pregnancy?"

"I...Edward...I really don't know."

"Well, we don't have a lot of options, Bells..."

"I don't want to talk about 'options'. If I am going to get pregnant, I'm okay with that. I just really don't want to do this by myself. I'm scared, though, not going to lie. What about you? Are you going to be able to handle having a newborn around? Can you deal with me being pregnant?"

"Yes. I've said from the beginning I want to be young when we start having kids. I want to be able to be there for them and for you. If you want to work after that's fine, too. I'll make it so I have less cases. The money doesn't mean shit if you don't have anyone to come home to. I learned that lesson real fucking fast."

"That's another thing, Mister. You and your potty mouth. You were doing so good the last time I was pregnant but you need to work on that again."

"I know. You need to take better care of yourself, though. You need to eat like normal people do...no more of this skipping lunches or throwing away breakfast I leave for you."

"Deal. No more going out and partying with a bunch of girls, including one who hates our future child's mother," she half-joked, raising her eyebrows.

"Deal," he smiled. Then added, "You know, I wasn't going to leave again."

"I didn't know that," Bella said, quietly, intertwining her fingers with his, "you must be awesome in court."

"It's two thirty in the morning. I've got the munchies...neither of us are tired..." Edward hinted.

Bella jumped up and made her way to the kitchen with Edward laughing and following behind her. She grabbed ice cream, he grabbed chips, she grabbed spoons, he grabbed whipped cream. As they made their way back into the living room, she raised an eyebrow, "Whipped cream and chips?"

"So not for the chips," Edward smirked. Then, when Bella rolled her eyes he asked innocently, "What? I thought you might like some for your ice cream..."

Bella was digging through their stacks of dvds until she found the one she was looking for—they could definitely use a comedy. She put Stepbrothers in and grabbed her tub of ice cream off the table. Her husband decided to take the opportunity and squirted whip cream right into the tub. At first, she thought he would let it go at that but just as she was getting into the movie, he put a dot of it right above her collar bone.

The cold cream sent instant goosebumps up and down her arms, when he leaned down and licked it off, it made her shiver. After about four more repeats of this, she finally convinced him to sit back and watch the movie. It had been forever since they'd done this. Back when they were dating, they would come home from the bar and both be wide awake. It would turn into munchies and some stupid movie that they rarely finished. Tonight, like all those other times, Bella began to feel herself drifting off when Edward's phone began to buzz on the table beside them.

He looked at her and then up at the clock, it was after three am. Quickly, he grabbed it and saw who was calling and Bella figured it was important since he answered so quickly and to her surprise, put it on speaker phone. "What's wrong? What's going on?"

"It's time, man. You're going to be an uncle," Jasper said in a rush, sounding slightly overwhelmed and a little breathless.

**Baby Whitlock is on the way! We'll find out if it's a boy or a girl ;) Looks like I need to start digging for baby names for the next chapter! Until then, LP xo**

***I don't own the movie Stepbrothers...I don't know if I need to say that or not...**


	24. Chapter 24

**Over 100 reviews! I'm SO excited! So, I'll keep this short ;) This is a more emotional chapter so be prepared! Shout out to Cait and my awesome reviewers! Your awesomeness astounds me!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "It's time, man. You're going to be an uncle," Jasper said in a rush, sounding slightly overwhelmed and a little breathless.**

**Chapter 24**

When they finally made it to the hospital, his parents were already there and his mom looked like she wanted to jump up and down for joy. He knew it was going to be a night of mixed emotions for him when he right away realized how painful it was to think this could have been him and Bella a year ago. She rushed over and hugged them both at the same time. "They're starting to think they might have to do a c-section. Alice is really tiny and they're worried about her delivering naturally."

"Is this bad?" Edward asked, kicking himself for not knowing. _What if Bella would have had to make that decision? _

"No but it will mean a bit more recovery time. Mom and baby should be fine."

"Good," he breathed a sigh of relief, "and how's dad holding up?"

"Your dad or the baby's dad?" His mom laughed, motioning over to Carlisle.

Unlike his mother, his father was pacing back and forth up and down the hallway. Edward had never seen his father nervous like this before. "Is he okay?"

"He's just worried about his little girl. Don't pay him any attention. I told him to stop before he has everyone else panicking. As for Jasper, he's alright but kind of hyperventilating at the same time. He'll be okay, too. When we got here he was literally sprinting down the hallway to get ice chips."

Edward's phone rang again and he answered it. "Edward? Is that you? It' great to hear from ya dear! Do ya know who this is?" The Southern voice drawled. Edward smile and wondered how he could NOT know who it was. Molly Whitlock was one of the sweetest women he'd ever met.

"Of course I know who this is. How are you, Molly?"

"Just great there, Eddy boy. How's my son holdin up?"

"He's doing good. They might have to do a c-section but everyone's fine. Are you and Keith coming?"

"Well, we sure as heck wouldn' miss the chance to see our new grand baby. We'll be boardin' here any minute. I just wanted to check in with ya'all. Tell Jazz we're comin'!"

"Will do. See you in a bit."

Bella hated hospitals, in fact, she was close to a panic attack just having to be in one. While Edward talked to Jasper's mom, she wondered away, trying to clear her head and calm down. She walked past the rooms of women in labor, past the nursery—totally unable to deal with that, and found herself in the pediatrics wing. Most of the rooms were dark and the kids were asleep for the night but the hallways were full of bright colors. She looked at the artwork hung everywhere and smiled to herself. "Can I help you?" a woman's voice asked from behind her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just wondered into here and was looking at the pictures. These are really great."

"Yeah, it's a shame the girl that comes to do art with the kids is moving. It's not exactly easy to find someone willing to volunteer their time anymore."

"How old are the kids?"

"Their ages vary. We have different ones come through all the time...then we have some that are here...well, they'll be here for awhile..." Bella knew what she was trying to say. Those kids were terminally ill.

"I'm a certified teacher," Bella blurted before she knew what she was saying.

"Oh?"

"Yeah...and I um...I'm not working right now..."

"Oh," the nurse perked up when she realized what Bella was getting at.

"I mean, I could come and try to help out..."

"There's no pay. It's strictly volunteer work."

"That' fine. I'd love to do this," Bella said, still not totally believing she was this excited about it.

"Alright, I'll talk to my supervisor. Miss...I'm sorry I didn't get your name."

"Bella Cullen."

"Any relation to Dr. Carlisle Cullen?"

"He's my father-in-law."

"Which of his boys are you married to?"

"Edward. The younger of the two."

"Oh, okay. Well, Bella, we'll definitely give you a call. Here, just leave your number," she said, handing her a pen and paper.

She said her goodbyes and walked back towards the maternity ward. When she found the group, she noticed Carlisle and Edward weren't there. "What's going on? Is everything okay?"

"Oh, thank God!" Esme exclaimed, pulling out her phone.

"What? What happened?" Bella asked, looking at her like she'd lost her mind.

"She's here. I found her...well, she found me. Okay, bye."

"I didn't realize I was lost..." Bella began but Edward came quickly up behind her.

"Where did you go? You scared the hell out of me," Edward said, hugging her.

"I was gone for like five minutes. Chill," Bella said, hugging him back.

"I just thought with your hospital phobia, that you took off on us...or worse...that someone might have..."

"Edward, stop. I'm fine. You can't worry about me like this all the time. How's Alice doing?"

"Good. They moved her in for the c-section."

About an hour later, everyone was getting antsy. It was almost five am and Rose was passed out on a chair, Carlisle was downing coffee after coffee, and Emmett and Edward were watching a rerun of some trivia show and fighting about the answers. Bella sat with Esme, deep in a discussion about Edward's annoying habits that drove both his wife and mother crazy.

When she got up to go find the bathroom, Edward followed and was waiting when she came out of the single restroom across the hall. "You okay?"

"Yes," she sighed, "I'm fine. Quit worrying about me!"

"Alright, alright, just one more thing."

"What?" she asked, slightly annoyed...and really tired.

"I want you to know that I'm only worrying because I love you. Are you going to be able to handle this?"

Bella knew what he was talking about but didn't know how respond. She didn't know how to tell him she was just as scared as she was happy about getting to see her newborn niece or nephew. This would be the first baby she'd been around since she had lost hers. This was the same hospital they had sat just a few floors away, holding their dead son. Tears came to her eyes and she shook her head. She wasn't going to lie to him, this wasn't going to be easy for her.

He pulled her to him and swayed back and forth, trying to get the crying to stop. "I know, angel. I don't know if I can do this either..."

"Hey! It's back on!" Emmett called from the door of the waiting room a few feet away. A nurse shushed him as she went by. He walked over to them and concern crossed his face. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Bella just shook her head and Edward looked at him, sadness in his own eyes. "Oh. Guys, look, if this is too much, Ally will understand. You know she will."

"No. I have to be here. It's not just my sister, Jazz is a part of this too. I can't just leave my best friend on the most important night of his life..."

"What about Bella? Bells, do you want me to take you home?" Emmett asked, turning towards her.

"No..." she began.

"If she wants to go, we'll go. Bella, it's up to you. I'm not going to leave you at home by yourself." Edward cut in.

"No..." Bella tried again.

"Look, it's not a problem, I can take her..."

"I SAID I'M FINE!" Bella said, louder than was necessary. Getting shushed by another nurse.

Both brothers turned to look at her, surprised. They'd gotten so used to having to take care of her, of quiet and scared Bella, that they forgot how feisty she used to be. "Both of you both need to shut up. I'm fine. I want to be here. I can't just go the rest of my life running away from babies!"

Now, Jasper interrupted them, "She's here. I have a daughter!"

Emmett and Edward both looked at Bella as if to say, "Can you handle this?"

Bella put her head up high and walked past them towards Jasper, following him back to see the baby. Emmett yelled in and woke up Rose. By the time they were all gathered around Alice, who was half asleep, the nurse was bringing the baby in and handing her to her father. "Everyone, I'd like to introduce my little girl, Olivia Marie Whitlock," Jasper announced proudly.

Everyone oohed and awed, passing her around. Bella was sitting completely still in her chair by Alice's bed, Edward has his hand on her shoulder. When the baby got to Bella, she froze at first, then took her from Rosalie. The baby was only four pounds and dressed in a cute pink onesie with matching socks. Bella fixed her blanket and rocked her. "Edward..." she started quietly before tears set in.

He kneeled down beside her so he could see both of their faces. "I know, Bells," he said, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear. "I know."

No one bothered her, everyone just went about their conversations. She figured they were being more polite than interested in each other. It was no wonder why she loved this family so much. When Bella finally let her go and handed her to Edward, what she saw, made her begin to sob. Her husband, who rarely cried, held the small pink bundle in his muscular arms and she could see tears rolling down his face. His family noticed her sobbing and looked to see why her crying had gotten worse.

Esme was there first, hugging Edward. Jasper came over and put his hand on Edward's shoulder. Emmett knelt down and put his arm around Bella. Alice reached over and rubbed her arm. Edward looked around, looking ashamed, before handing Olivia to her father. "I'm sorry, Jazz. I think Bella and I need to go. Congratulations. She's beautiful," he said through his tears. The last thing Bella remembered of that hospital room was looking back one last time to see everyone, including Emmett and Carlisle, trying to pretend they weren't crying.

When they got back to the apartment, Edward called into work and left a message for Trenton, explaining about Alice and that he wouldn't be in later that day. Bella had walked sullenly back to their bedroom when they'd first gotten in the door. He knew it was going to be a day of nightmares for her. He grabbed her pills, two glasses of water, and a few extra blankets, before making his way to her. She was in a tight ball, clinging to her pillow.

"Come here, Bella. I've got you, Bells," he tried to reassure her. He held her like that for awhile before turning her so she was resting her head on his chest. "Are you okay? Do you want to talk?"

After such a long time that he'd figured she wasn't going to answer, she finally spoke, "I remember him dead, Edward. I never...we never saw him...a different way. I c-can't even think what...he was like...would have been...when he was alive...it's not fair. It's not fucking fair!" She went from crying, to sobbing, to yelling in a matter of seconds.

"It's not fair," Edward stated, letting her know that he completely agreed.

"Then why? Why was he taken away? Why would this happen? Everyone keeps telling me it wasn't my fault. Well, who's fucking fault is it? If there is a God, how the fuck could he be so fucking cruel? How?" Bella demanded, as if he actually knew the answer.

"I don't know but everything happens for a reason. I used to beat the shit out of myself with those same damn questions and you know what? It got me nowhere. Something that Kathy said to me at the end of the last session was something that helped...even if just a little. He's safe now, Bella. Our son will never have to be scared of being kidnapped, of school shootings, of car accidents, of anything. He is safe somewhere else. I think about him every minute of every fucking day. I'm not saying this has brought me peace. It just helps me deal with it."

Bella was sitting up now, her eyes were puffy and bloodshot. He would give his life to take this pain from her. He often wondered why it couldn't have been him. Why he couldn't have died in his son's place. He wouldn't have though twice...then he thought of Bella. Even now, she was clinging to his arm as she sat up. There was no way she would have gotten through losing him. He knew it and it made him love her so much more.

When she let go of him and stood up, he grabbed her arm, "Hey, where are you going?"

"I don't know...I just need...I need..."

"Sleep. You've been up for almost twenty-four hours. Come back to bed, lay with me, and we'll get some rest. Bella, please don't leave me, please not today." He needed her more than he needed anyone. He'd tried everything to get her to want him that way again. He gave her space. He tried to move on. None of that worked then and it sure as hell wasn't going to work now. They—the both of them—had lost the baby. Not just her and not just him.

He knew he fucked up. He knew he did things he shouldn't have done. They'd both agreed to try to move past it. What he didn't know was if she did just want to be with him because she was scared. It seemed so easy for her to go from being happy with him to leaving to deal with things on her own. This needed to stop. This is the exact problem that caused them this whole damn mess to start with. That's when he realized it, it wasn't all because of losing the baby. It's how they dealt with losing the baby.

Bella seemed to be on the fence, still sitting up, glancing at the door and then back down at him. He figured he looked pretty pathetic, pleading with her not to leave. He was so tired of worrying about that.

Bella began to cry again, her body seemed to be giving up the fight. He sat up and pulled her towards him again. She surprised him by hugging him tightly and kissing him on the lips. He kissed her back and she responded by kissing him harder. Pushing him back down onto the bed, her tongue found his and before he knew it, she was straddling him. He was slightly confused and growing hard. Her fierce kissing never let up and he let her take the lead, not sure of what she really wanted.

Before he could even collect his thoughts, she reached down between them and pulled his cock out. Her touch made him even harder. He closed his eyes and arched up slightly. She must have taken this as an opportunity to slide off her pants because the next thing he knew, his dick was working its way into her and they both gasped.

She was stretched out over his body, her arms up towards the headboard, as she rode him. He heard her fingernails scratching at the wood, felt her body clenching him, her heard moans and felt her breath on his neck. They came at the same time but Bella made no move to get off of him. He stroked her back the shirt she still had on, breathing heavily. They both drifted off to sleep, still connected. The way they should have been from the beginning.

Edward woke up around two in the afternoon to his phone buzzing on the bedside table. Groaning, he reached up and grabbed it, "Hello?"

"Hey! It's mom. Did I wake you? Everyone is coming over around five for a big dinner since we were all too tired for lunch today. You and Bells should come. We'd love to see you both!"

"Alright," he said, groggily, trying not to wake up Bella, "Let me talk to Bella and we'll call you back."

"Were you sleeping? I'm sorry!"

"It's fine, mom. I need to get up now or I won't be able to sleep tonight anyway. I'll call you soon. Hey...was anyone upset that we left?"

"No. Absolutely not. You two do not need to worry about it. I was worried...I am worried...about, and I'm not trying to upset you...but if Bella is pregnant..."

"Mom, she's not pregnant," he could feel Bella stiffen on top of him, "it's fine. I'll call you later."

As soon as he hung up, Bella lifted her head and glared at him. "You told you mom about that?"

He explained how his mother had come to know and assured her that he hadn't even hinted at it with anyone else. "So do you want to go?"

"Yeah, I guess," she yawned, going to get up.

He pulled her back to him and kissed her. "Not so fast. We have a few hours. Let's not get up yet."

"Alright, what else did you have in mind," she asked, raising her eyebrow suggestively.

"Well, actually, I wanted to thank you for not going anywhere this morning. I love you."

"I love you, too," she smiled, "God, what are we going to do about the new baby? We can't just avoid her. One part of me wants to go right now and visit her and the other part wants to run. It's so painful."

"I know. I feel the same way. I also feel bad about leaving the hospital like that. There were just way too many people there and I over reacted...I just can't get that damn image out of my head..."

"What image?"

"Holding him. That night, you were still out of it from the surgery. When they finally let me back there to see you, they asked me if I would like to...to hold him. I wanted to say no. I knew it was going to be so, so hard to let him go but I had to see what he looked like. Just once. I had to. So, they gave him to me. He was so small, smaller than Olivia. I didn't want to cry because you were in the bed right beside me. If you woke up...I didn't want you to see me...so I didn't. I didn't cry once. I shook. Every muscle in my body was tense. I sat there for two hours, holding him." Edwards voice broke and he cleared his throat, gave a small smile, and continued.

"They asked me what we wanted to name him. We hadn't talked about it. I said the first thing that came to mind. When you finally woke up, I stayed there with you because I knew you needed me to. I wanted to leave though and I hate myself for it. I made myself stay. You were so tired and the pain medicine knocked you out again. They took him. I wanted him back but the nurse told me I wasn't looking very good. They left with him. So, I made sure you were asleep and I took off for the bathroom. I literally threw up for five straight minutes. One of the nurses came in and heard me. She called my dad. That was the worst twenty-four hours of my life. I can't remember her name but she was supposedly the one who helped deliver Emmett."

Bella was looking up at him, as if she didn't know what to say. "I...I didn't realize you had him for that long. I was so confused. I didn't get to hold him very long. I can't imagine what it would have been like to do what you did," she wiped tears from her eyes, "I'm sorry."

"For what, angel?" he asked quietly.

"For not...did you talk to Tanya about this?"

"Yeah. I did," he answered honestly.

"I should have been there for you, too. I shut down. I know I did. I'm so, so sorry. I've made so many mistakes in this past year..."

"And I haven't?" Edward snorted through tears of his own.

"What are we going to do? How are we going to fix this? How do we fix our family when our baby isn't here."

"I know it hurts. We won't forget him, ever, but we need to move on with our lives, Bella. I tried to do it before...and it hurt you...it was too soon then but we really don't have a choice now. We can sit here and keep thinking about what could have been or we can work on what will be."

"Very poetic, Mr. Cullen," Bella laughed, "but I get it. Edward...if it's too soon...I don't want to...but I want...I want this. I want a baby."

"Bella..."

"No. I wanted this so bad since we were married and I still do. I mean, I know it's scary but I don't want anything else. I want you and a family and that's all I need in my life."

"What I was going to say was, I think we should let things take their own course. We won't do anything to prevent it but we can't get our hopes up. If it happens, it happens. Agreed?"

"Yeah," she said, snuggling into him. "This time, though, we'll discuss names _before_ the baby is born."

"Deal. So, what would you say to taking a trip over to the hospital. We could go when no one is there but Alice and Jasper. I just really want to see them."

"Sounds like a good idea. Call your mom, tell her we'll be there for dinner. I want to stop at the old house first, though. I have a few things to pick up. It's kind of important."

They arrived at the house and she looked to Edward, "I need you." He understood immediately and followed her. She couldn't go in there by herself. Making her way upstairs, she took a deep breath and gently opened the nursery. Everything was as she'd left it almost a year ago. The light blue diaper bag was on the changing table. The ultrasound pictures were on the glider. The little blue elephant and blanket were still in the crib.

"I thought you had cleaned this all out."

"I couldn't. I thought about it all the time but I just couldn't do it. So, I put everything of his in here and closed the door and haven't been in here since the night I asked for the divorce. I came in, put down the blanket and left."

Bella grabbed the diaper bag off the changing table. Gently, she picked up the pure white afghan Alice had made her as a shower gift, the ultrasound photos, the elephant and the blue blanket. Packing it into the diaper bag, she turned around to see Edward watching her. Without saying anything, she headed back down to the car.

**Review and let me know what you think :) LP xo**


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Bella tiptoed quietly into the room once Jasper motioned for her to enter. Edward was right behind her, his hand on the small of her back. "Hey," she whispered to Alice, who was much more awake than earlier and holding her small pink bundle.

"Bells!" Alice half-whispered, half-exclaimed. She slid over so there was room on the side the bed for Bella to sit. Bella happily obliged, scooting over to them and kissing Olivia's little forehead. Edward and Jasper had stepped out and it was just the three of them Tears began to form again and Alice reached for her hand. "It's okay, Bells. I know this is hard for you..."

"I've missed you, Ally! I'm so sorry I haven't been there for you! I can't believe I didn't come to the shower...I wasn't...dealing. I've missed all of you! Almost as much as I've missed him..." she let her voice trail off, they both knew who she was talking about.

"I've miss you too, Bells. I was so worried about you. We all were. We were worried about you both. Edward just kind of shut down after you told him you wanted a divorce. I thought we were going to have to put him on suicide watch for the first few months. You have no idea how happy I am that you two are back together! Are things okay?"

Olivia was handed over to Bella, who brought the baby to her chest and kissed her again before continuing. "Yeah. They are. They aren't perfect but they aren't going to be."

"I'm glad. My brother loves you more than anything or anyone else. Ever. I know he's made some stupid mistakes but he would never have done it to hurt you. I know my brother and he would never want that."

"I know, Al. I get that he loves me but it's hard to forgive him for what happened with Tanya. I'm trying though. Really, really hard. I just want to be with him..."

"So don't let that b-i-t-c-h take that away from you. Go out. Show him off. Let him show you off. That would probably making her even more unhappy. He's your husband, Bells. Let the world know to stay the 'f' away from him!"

Bella smiled at her, rocking Olivia, who was clenching and unclenching her little fists. "Aw, even your newborn daughter doesn't like stupid, old Tanya!"

After the two of them got a good laugh out of it, Bella got serious again. "I'm sorry we left earlier today. It was a long night for us both and it was really hard. We are happy for you both. She's so, so cute!"

"I love her. I didn't think it was possible for me to love someone more than Jasper but it's true. She's my entire world now."

After playing with the corner of Olivia's blanket, Bella took a deep breath and decided to confide in the only sister she'd ever had. "Edward and I...we're trying to...to have another baby."

Alice looked at her with shock for a minute before smiling to the point that Bella could almost see all of her teeth. Just then, the guys came back, drinks in hand. Jasper handed Alice a milky looking smoothie and to Bella's surprise, Edward gave her the same thing. The husbands each had a soda. "Hey, no fair!" Bella protested, jokingly.

"Jazz thought it would be for the best. It's supposed to be good for you."

"I think it would be good for your body too there, Mr. Cullen," Bella said raising an eyebrow as if to ask 'What the hell are you up to?'

She watched as Jasper set his soda down on the small table by his wife while giving Edward a knowing look. _He fucking told Jasper!_

"Edward Anthony Cullen! Did you tell Jasper that you are trying to get me pregnant?" She asked, rather astounded.

Alice burst into a fit of giggles as Jasper looked back and for between them. Obviously she picked up on the same thing Bella had—neither guy knew that Bella had told Alice also. "What the hell is so funny, Alice?" Edward asked, totally amused.

"Baby over here, Mr. Potty-mouth!" Bella scolded him with a smile. He smiled at her before apologizing to Olivia and rubbing her little cheek with his thumb.

"Sorry, Edward," Alice put in, "Bella told me not to tell anyone and that you didn't want everyone to know." Then as if realizing what she'd just told him she added, "I guess I also wasn't supposed to tell you I know..."

"Oh, I see," he said playfully, "you can tell whoever you want but I need to keep it a secret. That's not very fair, Mrs. Cullen."

"You can punish me later," she said in response. Her face turned bright red when she realized what was said. Alice and Jasper were both trying not to laugh and her husband was looking at her like he didn't know what to say. She knew his family didn't have any idea what she'd actually just implied. She also knew that her husband would love to take her up on that offer. Wondering if she could actually give that to him, she began to feel guilty for teasing him that way. Alice and Jasper seemed to notice the tension and she heard them talking about bottles or something else non-threatening.

Edward walked over to her and sat down on the corner of the bed. He whispered into her ear, "Don't tempt me, Isabella," before winking at her to let her know he was joking and whispering again, "I won't do anything until you are one hundred percent ready."

Bella handed him his little niece and smiled as he mouthed a silent, "I love you," before looking down at the baby. Feelings of love for this man overwhelmed her and she wanted to leap into his arms and make love to him right there in that cold, white hospital room. Although, that would be traumatizing for his sister and the new addition to the family. She suspected it wouldn't be too, too much for Jazz...she knew the poor guy walked in on them more than once in college, though she was sure he still wouldn't appreciate it.

With Olivia now in Edward's arms, she remembered what she had for them. Jumping up she said, "Oh, and I brought something for you!" Grabbing the diaper bag she'd brought in with her, she pulled out the white afghan and brought it over to Alice. "I know how hard you worked on this and I wanted to give you something special. Our son never got to use it and I don't know that we'll ever have another one who will have the chance, either. So, consider this the only gift Edward Jr. can give to his little cousin, Olivia."

She said it through tears and a smile. Alice was returning a response with the same look. "Bells, I love it. Thank you so, so much. If you two ever give baby Livy another little cousin, we'll be happy to gift it back to you. I love you guys!"

About a mile away from his parents, Edward reached for her hand and said, "That was really nice of you. I'm glad baby Livy will get to use it."

"I guess I've realized that I can't keep holding onto these things forever. I have what I need from him. It's all in the diaper bag. The rest can be given away."

"Oh, okay."

"What?" she asked, hearing the mixed emotions in his voice.

"I just, I know we aren't getting our hopes up. That was my idea, I get it, but what if we do have another baby? I mean, I don't mind buying everything all over again but we spent so much time picking everything out and getting things ready I'd hate to just pull it all apart and give it to someone else. Bella, I'm not ready to give up those things yet. I know that it's been a long time but I don't know..."

"It's okay if you want to keep it," Bella reassured him, rubbing the top of his hand with her index finger, "I just want the things that I took to be close to us at the apartment. We don't have to give everything away."

He smiled at her and pulled onto the road that would lead up to his childhood home. "Someday I might be able to but not yet."

When they got to the house, Bella was surprised to see the Whitlocks in the kitchen with Esme and Carlisle. Esme's face lit up when she walked in and gave her a big hug. Molly Whitlock followed soon, "Oh, sweet girl, it's so good gettn' to see ya! Been too, too long. Now, where is the handsome feller of yours?"

"He's right here, Molly," Edward said, coming up from behind and Molly reached out to include him in their hug.

"Oh, I've missed ya kid!" she gave him a kiss on the cheek before letting them go.

"Have you seen Livy yet?" Edward asked.

"No. We called Jazz about an hour ago to tell him we were comin' and he told us to wait being someone was there who needed to have some privacy with the little doll. Must have been someone mighty important!"

Bella smiled to herself that this wonderful friend of Edward's had thought to give them privacy over seeing his parents for the first time in months. She made a mental note to text Jasper a 'thank you'. "How long are you guys staying?"

"Oh, just til tomorra. I wanna to be here longer but Keith doesn' have any leave time left so we're shippin out in the mornin."

"You know, Edward, Kieth and I were just talkin' 'bout you and Jazz that first year of college..."

Bella took this as an opportunity to get some space while the two of them launched into college stories, well—edited versions of college stories, that she had heard a million times. Finding herself out on the back deck, she was glad she had a jacket on. She began to wonder why Rosalie and Emmett weren't there yet, so she sent Rose a text. After a few minutes, which is longer than normal for Rose, she finally got a response. A short, something's-definitely-up, response.

"Bella, are you okay?" Esme asked from behind her.

"Huh? Yeah...I'm fine. It's just been a long couple of days."

"Well, I wanted to come check on you. I know Edward was looking around nervously for you but is too polite to interrupt one of Molly's stories," Esme laughed.

"He worries too much. Really, I'm fine, just tired," after a few minutes of saying nothing to each other, Bella said, "I heard you heard about us trying again."

"Yeah. You know how he gets when he's frazzled, he just talks and talks. The boy has no filter."

"I know, right?" Bella laughed with her. "I just wanted to know, maybe what you thought...I mean...it's kind of soon..."

"I don't think it's that soon. I just want to make sure that it's what you both want."

"I do want this. I tried to tell myself I didn't for so long I almost believed it."

"Well, why don't you join us again? Dinner's almost ready. Carlisle's already carving the ham."

Dinner was delicious. Ham with pineapple, mash potatoes, sweet potatoes, macaroni salad, corn, and green beans covered the table. Everyone was talking, having a good time. Well, almost everyone. Bella noticed that when Emmett and Rosalie showed up, they came in separately and neither looked too happy. It was strange to see them fight. Rose usually said exactly how she felt and Emmett did the same in return. They would work things out and make peace quicker than any couple Bella had ever met.

Now, they were avoiding eye contact as they sat across the table from each other. Bella looked over at Edward and moved her eyes in the direction of his brother and sister-in-law as if to say 'what the hell?'

Edward shifted awkwardly in his seat before clearing his throat, "So, Em, what have you guys been up to today?"

"Not much. You?"

The response was so out of the ordinary for Emmett that everyone was looking at him now, except the Whitlocks, they didn't know Emmett as well as Edward. Before anyone could say anything, the doorbell rang and Esme looked out the window that looked over the driveway. "Oh dear..."

"Who is it, honey?" asked Carlisle, going to stand beside his wife.

"The Denali girls are here," Esme said, sounding half-confused, half-annoyed.

"I'll go see what they want," Rose jumped up, obviously eager to get out of the room.

_What the hell is going on?_ Bella wondered. Looking over at Edward, she could see he wasn't comfortable and had put his fork down. He looked up at her and gave her a small smile. Minutes later, Carmen walked in behind Rosalie, carrying a large object covered in a big bag, probably so nothing would fall out on the way.

"Sorry to interrupt your dinner. We picked up a few things for the baby and wanted to drop it off."

"That's very thoughtful of you, Carmen. Thank you. We'll make sure Alice and Jasper get it," Carlisle said kindly.

"Thanks and it's not just me. Kate and I went shopping and Tanya wrapped everything while we were over at my dad's today. Tell Alice if she needs anything to let us know."

"Will do."

After they left, everyone went back to dinner, the presents forgotten about. Once dinner and desert were finished, Molly and Keith said their goodbyes and headed to the hospital. Rosalie and Emmett still weren't really talking. Things were starting to become awkward. Finally, Esme walked over and picked up the big basket. Pulling the bag from over top, she smiled and showed everyone. "Wow, they went all out!"

There were tons of baby items. Bottles, diapers, pacifiers, bottle liners, gift cards for Babies R Us, onesies, socks, baby bath products, and on top was a pink card. Esme picked it up to stick it in between the diapers so it wouldn't fall and made a strange sound when she revealed a blue envelope underneath it. "What's wrong, mom?" Emmett asked.

"Oh...um..." taking a deep breath, she walked over to Edward, her lips pursed. She looked at him as if she didn't know whether or not she should hand it over. Finally, she held it out, "It's for you."

Bella stood up and went around the table, looking over his should, she gasped. In beautiful, curvy handwriting the card was addressed to 'Uncle Edward'. He looked just as surprised and turned to her. "Do you want me to open it?"

"Might as well. I don't think they'd try to poison you. Besides, I'm curious," Bella said calmly but growing annoyed.

He opened the card envelope but there wasn't a card in there...it was a picture. He gasped, dropping both, and bringing his hand to his mouth. Leaning over to get a better look, Bella saw that it was a picture of Tanya and Edward. Judging from how young he looked, she would assume it was before they'd even met. It was taken outside of what looked like his aunt and uncle's in Forks. Edward had his arms around Tanya as they stood in front of two older looking men. Both of the men had a hand on Edward's shoulder and were laughing.

Before she could ask who they were, Esme was standing over them now, with tears in her eyes. "Oh my, God. This was the Fourth of July party. This was the last time we had everyone together before...before he died..."

Carlisle came over and gave a sad smile, followed by Emmett and Rosalie. Emmett reached down and picked it up. "I remember this being taken. They wanted a picture with you and you always have this weird aversion to pictures. So, you were standing their with Tanya and they walked up behind you, put their hands on your shoulder and bust out laughing. Aunt Liz took the picture. I was right behind her."

When Bella realized who these men must have been, she took a few steps back, feeling like an outsider. She couldn't believe how angry she felt—she was ashamed because of how angry she felt. Edward wasn't saying anything and she didn't know what to say about that, either. Rose, ever the person for bluntness said, "I can't believe she did this!"

Emmett turned to her, still holding the picture, "Rose! This is the last picture we have of either one of them. Both of them. In the same picture!"

"Why now, Emmett?" Rose practically yelled, "Why after all of this time did she decide to give it to him? I'm calling Carmen. I can't believe Tanya! Edward, you don't have to keep it...if you don't want it..."

"Rosalie! Come on! This is our grandparents for Christ's sake! He better keep it!"

"That's not your place, Emmett! How do you think Bella feels about that picture? That's not your decision to make!"

"Oh, of course it's not my decision to make! Nothing is _ever_ my decision! The world_ revolves_ around _you_ and what _you_ want!"

_Woah, this is so no longer about the stupid picture. _Bella couldn't believe they were yelling at each other like this. As angry as she was with Tanya, she understood if Edward wanted to keep it. She could probably talk him into leaving it here at his parents. Edward stood up and walked out of the room, not even bothering to push his chair back in. Bella followed him as he made his way to his bedroom.

"Edward! Come on, talk to me!" Bella yelled through the door after he slammed it shut behind him.

There was silence for a few minutes and then he finally opened it. She walked in and sat down at his desk. "Interesting dinner..."

"Don't. I can't fucking believe she'd do this..."

"Do what? I'm really not understanding. This is typical, manipulative Tanya."

"She's never been this way with me. When my grandfather died, the first one that died, I asked her if she had any pictures of them. She was constantly taking pictures. She'd told me no. Obviously, she had this one and would rather use it to hurt you _now_ then give it to me to display for the fucking funeral service _then_. How fucking sick is that?"

"Edward, I'm sorry..."

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault. _I'm_ sorry."

"Don't you dare apologize either. Especially, don't apologize _for her_. She just wants to upset us. Let's just let it go."

"She's putting me in fucked up position!"

"No. She's not. I refuse to let you destroy that picture. That's family history and besides your terrible taste in women when it was taken, there are three very handsome men in that photo," she stood up and walked over to him, kissing his cheek. "Although, I don't exactly want it hung in our living room..."

He gave a small laugh and kissed her back before walking with her over to the bed. Once they were both seated, she put her legs over his lap and he hugged her. "I just can't believe she's doing this. Why can't she just let me go?"

"I can't say I blame her. You're pretty amazing, Mr. Cullen."

"Yeah, well she needs to realize there's already a very, very amazing and perfect_ Mrs_. Cullen."

"Alice told me to show you off. She said it would piss her off more than anything."

"Why do I feel like she just declared war?"

"She didn't," Bella said, looking him right in the eyes, dead serious. "She just provoked _me_. _I'm_ the one declaring war."

This was the Bella he'd wanted back since they'd lost their son. This was the Bella who fought for what she wanted know matter how stubborn she was being. His heart was beating hard in his chest. While it pissed him off that Tanya was the one who brought the fight back in her, he was glad she was getting back to her old self. He was just about to ask her what exactly 'war' meant in girl fight terms, he didn't want her to get hurt, when there was a knock on the door and it was pushed open.

"Rose just left...with my car...can you give me a ride home?" Emmett asked, kind of looking like a scared little kid.


	26. Chapter 26

**A few things. First, I have no idea why there was no author's note the last time. I put them on and they disappeared. If they had appeared, you all would have read my HUGE thank you's to my reviewers who've helped me get over 100 reviews! Love you guys! As usual, a shout out to Cait! Second, this one deals with some pretty mature sexual content. It's rated M FOR A REASON! It's not ground breaking and I'm not that good at writing it so don't hate me for putting it in. Third, it's a bit longer than normal because I didn't get to do this yesterday. There's a lot going on in this one.**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "Rose just left...with my car...can you give me a ride home?" Emmett asked, kind of looking like a scared little kid.**

**Chapter 26**

The three of them pulled up in front of Emmett's house and were all glad to see that Emmett's car was still there. The tension decreased exponentially. "I know you don't want to talk about it but if you change your mind I'm here, man," Edward said to his brother as Emmett got out of the backseat and shut the door. Bella watched him walk towards the garage instead of the house. Edward seemed to be doing the same because he didn't pull away. After Emmett looked into the little window on the side, he punched the concrete wall. Edward muttered 'shit' under his breath and got out of the car.

Though it was muffled, she could here both boys outside talking. "She fucking left! I know it! She's not going to come back!"

"What are you talking about? It's Rose. You two are perfect for each other. She's probably just trying to cool off."

"You don't understand. She's been threatening to leave for awhile now..."

"What the fuck did you do?"

"It's not something I did it's something I want to do! Look, I really don't want to talk about it. Take Bells and go home. I'll be fine."

"Do you want to come stay with us tonight? The couch has a pullout..."

"No. I'm staying in case she comes back," Emmett said, his mind made up.

The two brothers got closer and she couldn't hear what was being said but soon, her husband returned to the car. Bella stayed silent when she saw how tense he looked. For the first time since he'd gotten out of the car, she could see that he actually might be agreeing with Emmett. Maybe Rosalie did leave for good.

Once back at the apartment, Bella got his suit ready for work the next day and walked back into the living room. "Are you okay, baby?"

"Um...yeah..." he said unconvincingly.

Bella let it go and walked over to the diaper bag that was now on the table. She took out the items she'd gotten from the house and set them down gently. She pulled out a frame and added the ultrasound pictures to it, along with the couple pictures of her and Edward that were already in there. The frame stuck out from the wall far enough that she was able to put his elephant on top of it, hanging them both. Next, she took the blanket and walked back towards the bedroom. This, she hung on the back of their bedroom door.

When she came back out, he wasn't doing work on the laptop like she had suspected, he was staring at a blank document. "Edward, talk to me. What is this about? Tanya? Emmett? What?"

"Emmett. I'm fine, really. It's just hard thinking about our split and seeing Emmett that way kind of reminded me of how I felt."

"Why do you think she left?" Bella asked, coming around and sitting down beside him.

"He won't tell me but it has to be bad...first because normally he doesn't keep anything from me. Second because the two of them have been together for as long as I can remember. Why leave him now?"

"I think maybe you're both over reacting. So they had a fight. How many times have we fought just in the past month?"

"That's different. They weren't having problems...do you think he cheated?"

"I don't know but I can't really see Emmett doing that...then again, I couldn't really see you doing that either. I don't know, Edward."

"I have a bad feeling about all of this."

"Rosalie might be at work tomorrow, maybe you could talk to her," Bella said hopefully, "If not, just give it a couple days, I'm sure they'll work things out."

"I hope so. Emmett isn't someone who's meant to be alone."

Bella knew she had to do something to get his mind off of things. She went into their room and sat down, contemplating whether or not she could pull this off tonight. When she finally set her mind to it, she went through his drawers but couldn't find anything that would help her. With a sigh, she grabbed two older ties from his closet, closed the door, and laid them out so that they ran the sides of the bed. Taking off her socks and sweatshirt, Bella stood at the foot of the bed, facing the bed and looking away from the door. Calling out to her husband, she stood in a pair of skinny jeans, a light blue shirt with a dark blue cami underneath, and a pink bra and panty set.

She heard him come in and after his footsteps stopped for a short amount of time, probably trying to figure out what was going on, they started again and she felt him up against her back. He took her hair from the side of her neck and laid it so her neck was exposed. Running a finger from under her earlobe down to her collar bone he whispered, "If you don't want this, you have to tell me. _Now_."

"I do. I want it," Bella said breathlessly, her blood hammering through her veins.

"Fine but for the record, I think this is a bad idea," he said hesitantly and then stepped back from her.

"Undress, Isabella."

She reached for her shirt and pulled it up over her head. Next, was the cami, which she put on the floor with the shirt. Between his warmth on her back no longer being there and the air hitting her skin, she shivered and tried to stop herself, not wanting to make him think she was scared.

He let her know to keep going, "The bra next, Isabella. Come on." Reaching behind, she pulled the little clasp and it too joined the other clothes on the floor. She made sure to keep her head down and was surprised the he didn't have her tie her hair back. "Good. Now your pants...slowly."

She did as she was told and stood there in nothing but her panties. He let her stand there, not saying anything for at least three minutes. Refusing to let herself turn around, she waited for her next order. When he finally told her to take off her panties, she did so and kicked them onto the pile. After a couple more minutes of her standing there, now fully naked, she felt him against her.

The rough material of his jeans and button-up shirt were cold against her skin and she wanted so badly to see him naked. When she went to turn, he took her by the shoulders and gently spun her back around. "Keep your head down, Isabella."

She tried not to whimper as he walked away from her again. He returned, and ran his hands from the tops of her breasts down to her inner thighs. She moaned and went to lean against him. "Stand," he commanded.

She righted herself and smiled, he was in full ego mode. For whatever reason, a reason she didn't understand, she felt lighter. For the first time in almost a year and half, she felt like herself. The knowledge that Edward was only like this with her made her heart beat even faster. Wanting to see him full force she dared to defy him. Dropping down onto the bed, she sat and looked up at him with a come-and-get-me grin. Ego-Edward would flip out. Ego-Edward would have grabbed her by her hair, spun her around and put her over his knee. This Edward just kissed her.

At first, she was surprised then it turned slightly to disappointment. This was something they did that was completely theirs. They didn't share this with anyone else. Having no idea how to react she slid her body towards the top of the bed, lying right between the two sprawled out ties. Edward was still completely clothed, she was completely naked.

"I've been bad, sir," she said, looking right at him...something she wasn't supposed to do. After another rule was broken, he finally seemed to be getting back to Ego-Edward. His green eyes burned as he walked toward the right side of the bed. Bella squirmed when he pulled his shirt off.

"Stay still," Edward demanded this time. She made a show of sitting up and reaching for him. He grabbed the tie closest to him and wrapped it around her wrist. "You _will_ tell me if this is too much."

"_Affirmative_, sir," she said with an eye roll.

His lips slammed down on hers after he responded with, "Don't fucking get smart with me, Isabella."

He'd let one of her arms untied and she reached down to unbutton his pants. He allowed it but the second he slid his boxers off completely, her other wrist was tied. He grabbed her legs and gently pulled so that her arms were pulled tight and spread her legs. "Don't make a sound, Isabella."

Now, he bent down and licked the insides of her thighs. She managed to stay quiet until his tongue made contact with her clit. She arched up, her arms straining and cried out loudly. He punished her by stopping immediately and sliding up her legs. Before she knew it, he was thrusting into her. She cried louder and wrapped her legs around him. He stopped again and pulled her legs off. "Keep them spread, Isabella."

His green eyes bore into her as he started his assault on her again. She arched up, this time keeping silent. She could hear him moan into her hair as his body tensed and hers responded. They came at the same time. He pulled out and held himself above her. What happened next shocked the hell out of even her. She pulled at her restraints, trying to twist her body and get him off of her. Her mind just shut down, her body in overload. The next thing she knew, she was untied and her husband was pulling her up. "Bella!"

She gasped and looked around, disoriented. _Did I just black out?_

"Why didn't you stop me? Bella, why didn't you tell me to stop. Safe word or not I would have fucking stopped!"

"I...I don't know what happened. I was fine, I swear!"

Edward looked at her in horror before grabbing the comforter and wrapping her in it. When they were both lying down, he kissed her and asked, "What happened? What did I do that set things off?"

"I don't know. I swear I was fine...I was more than fine..."

"It's getting late, you should get some rest," he said quietly.

"I love you, Edward," Bella said, still confused.

"I love you too, Bells. Thank you. Tonight was pretty awesome...up until the end."

"I think the end was pretty damn good to be honest with you," she said with a wink and kissed him on the cheek. "Goodnight."

Edward walked into his office the next morning to find Rosalie sitting in a seat by his desk. He looked at her confused before setting down his laptop bag. "Where'd you end up?"

"Kate's."

"Did you go home at all? Call him? Talk to him at all?"

"No."

He sighed, "You can't just keep running from him. You saw what happened to my marriage when that shit started. Call him and try to work things out..."

"I can't give him a baby, Edward," Rose blurted out, quickly.

"That's what this is about?" Edward looked at her like she was completely being ridiculous.

"Yes. It's been a constant fight the past couple months. You and Bella...you're smart. No more babies. I mean, look at what you went through with your son. Why would I risk that happening to another baby? Not to mention that I just simply don't have time for kids right now."

_Mom and Alice must not have gotten to her, yet. _"Well, we might have one someday..."

"Doesn't it hurt though? I mean think about, Edward, really think about it. What if Bella loses another baby? It would kill her. It would kill you. I think you guys are being smart about this."

He debated on whether or not to tell her but maybe she was right...she was always the one who was honest no matter what. If Bella wanted a baby it could just be her wanting to replace Edward Jr. Of course his mother wouldn't argue against it. Alice was on her happy baby high. He was silent for longer than he should be.

"You're mad about me leaving yesterday, aren't you?"

"Rose, you need to talk to him. We both know Emmett. He loves you but he's a bit of a big kid. He needs you."

"Yeah, a big kid who wants a kid. I can't take care of them both, Edward. For God's sake, he was arrested this weekend!"

"He did that to protect Bella. I'm sorry but no way in hell am I holding that against him. Ever. You don't want kids at all? You don't think that a few months or years down the road you'll ever see a baby in your future? I mean, did you and Emmett talk about this before you were married?"

"Yeah but things got crazy after college with work. You know how that goes. We kept pushing the wedding back because I was worried I wouldn't have the time to plan it. He never really brought it up until a few months ago. Edward, career-wise even, think about how much time a baby would take away from you. I love Bella but you're already doing a lot to take care of her. I don't blame either one of you for that but will she have the ability to care for a child..."

"Rose, I know it would take time from work but don't doubt Bella's ability to be a good mom. She loves kids. Teaching is what helped her get through losing Edward Jr. I see your argument. Maybe it is a good idea for Bella and I to wait...but you need to talk to my brother. Try to find a compromise..."

"I don't kow. I just kind of feel like he didn't realize who he was marrying."

"Rose, I'm going to say this because you are always brutally honest with me. I may sound like a dick so sue me but you are more dedicated to this job then you are to him. That's not fair. He couldn't have known this was how things would be. If you don't want to give him a baby, then fine. If you don't want to give him you, not fine. Don't hurt him. I can also say that of all the guys out there, you will never find anyone as loyal, dedicated, and loving as Emmett. No one will ever love you more than he does. Call and talk to him if you can't meet him face to face but don't just ignore him."

"I respect your honesty. I'll talk to him. Now, come on, we have a meeting in like ten minutes."

After Edward left for work and Bella sat down with her phone to call Renee. After a long conversation about nothing important, she turned the TV on and about dropped her cereal bowl. Mike Newton's face took up the screen as the anchor commented, "Newton is charged with the sexual assault of Mrs. Isabella Cullen, wife of the Seattle-born millionaire Edward Cullen. Cullen is a lawyer at the top notch firm Hale Law. Newton had gone missing after the assault and was arrested this past weekend when he was found by Isabella Cullen's brother-in-law, Emmett Cullen. Emmett was also taken into custody but let go after only a few hours. Newton is claiming it was all a set up by Edward, who was at the time separated from Isabella. Edward's whereabouts during the assault remain unknown and he was unavailable for comment."

"Well, sounds like quite a story to follow. Thank you, Nancy. Now, let's get a check of the weather..."

Bella turned the TV off, throwing the remote onto the couch and grabbing her coat. She sprinted out the door and down to the Volvo, pulling out her cell on the way. There were two missed calls from Edward and a text. "I'm on my way home."

Stopping in the parking garage, she leaned against the car and ran her hand through her hair. It was no secret what the media was insinuating. Edward Cullen, one of Seattle's most wanted men, was about to have all his dirty laundry aired on television. There was a reason she hadn't given him his alibi. She knew it would ruin his reputation completely if he'd admitted to where he really was that night. _I'm the fucking victim here! __How could they make it sound like my family members are the ones to blame?_

A man in a suit approached her then, holding a phone out, "Isabella Cullen? Do you have time for some questions?"

Backing up against the car, she tried to get herself to breathe. Quietly, she practically whispered, "Um...no...I'm sorry."

"Mrs. Cullen, is it true that you and your husband were separated at the time?" He asked, ignoring her obvious distress.

"I have nothing to say..."

"Is it because Mr. Cullen was involved with another woman? He wanted to end your relationship, is that true?"

"No...I wanted the divorce..." Bella had pushed away and was walking toward the elevators. He followed and she'd blurted out the answer. She was really panicked, not realizing what she'd actually just said.

"So, you did want to divorce him? Was it on the terms of infidelity?"

"Bella, don't say anything to him!" Rose came up behind them and wrapped an arm around her. As they stepped onto the elevator she asked, "You okay? What are you doing down here?"

"Edward...I wanted Edward," Bella said, trying not to cry.

"He sent me. Natalia was watching the news and pulled him out of a meeting when it aired. Soon after, two police officers showed up and they took him to the station for questioning..."

"They did what?" Bella gasped, her heart sinking, "He didn't do anything wrong! I was raped and beaten by Mike! Edward's innocent!"

"We know that. They know they have nothing on him. He went without a fight, Bella. He's a lawyer, he knows how to defend himself. Before he left with them, he was getting things ready to leave and come here. Natalia paged me, asking if I could come stay with you. O'Brien's going to come after the meeting. This isn't a joke, Bella. Don't say anything to anyone without a lawyer present! Understood?"

"Rose, I may have said..."

"What? What did you say?"

"He asked me if Edward wanted the divorce and I...I told him no...That it was me who wanted it."

"Shit!" Rose pulled out her cell and began to make a call.

"Who are you calling?"

"Natalia. I'll get her to tell O'Brien to get his ass here now."

A knock on the door made Bella shake her head. _Who the hell is that now?_ Throwing the door open, she stopped dead. Tanya Denali was standing in front of her...totally disheveled. "What the _fuck_ are you doing here, Tanya?"

"I saw the news. Is he here?"

"No! They fucking took him in for questioning!"

"What?" Tanya exclaimed.

"Why are you _here_, Tanya?" Bella asked again, seriously annoyed now.

"He has to come clean with everyone. We have to tell everyone where he was that night."

"Fuck you," Bella glared at her. If looks could kill, Tanya would be dead on the plush carpet of the hallway.

"No! Just listen! I can testify! So can Kate and Carmen! Not only am I the alibi to keep him out of jail, the three of us saw you with Mike earlier that night! I'm serious...this could be the_ one_ thing that saves him!"

Rose was watching the display like a spectator viewing a tennis match. Bella looked towards her for advice. "Bells...she has a point..."

"God _dammit_!" Bella yelled, exasperated, before turning around and taking a deep breath. Grabbing her coat again, she grabbed Tanya's arm and pulled her out the door. Rose followed, both of them wanting to know what the hell Bella was doing. "We're going down to the station and we're bringing our boy home!"

"So, you're having troubles with the wife. You want her out of the way. We get it. Just admit what you did!"

"I didn't do anything. Mike Newton, who you fucking have in custody, beat the hell out of and raped my wife. I wouldn't fucking touch her like that!"

"We found something interesting in the house. A certain box in the closet upstairs..."

"Oh, come on! You can buy any of that anywhere! It's not illegal to have! You think a couple pairs of handcuffs and some whips are enough to keep me here? I've seen this a hundred times. You've got nothing and you're pulling whatever you can out of your asses!"

They had been going back and forth like this for almost an hour. They'd try to accuse him of something, using different 'evidence' and he'd shoot them down. He was losing his cool and had to remind himself to calm down. The two of them were sitting in a cement room with a two-way mirror...a place he'd been a million times defending clients. The beep sounded, letting them know the intercom kicked on. "Officer Daniels? We have someone hear who is willing to testify on behalf of Mr. Cullen's whereabouts. There's a camera outside of the townhouse where the girl lives. She claims to have spent the entire night with him."

_Dammit, Tanya! _He knew Bella was going to have a coronary when she found out about Tanya doing this. His reputation could be kissed goodbye. They didn't have anything on him... He was just about to tell him it was a lie...that she was just jealous and wanted to break his marriage, when the door flew open and Tanya, Rose and Bella walked in with another officer. Edward stood up and went to her, just then on the other side of the door, another cop led none other than Mike Newton down the hallway just outside. Bella screamed and grabbed for him. He held her and Officer Daniels watched with a sad, sympathetic look.

"I'm taking you home. In fact, I'm getting you the fuck out of this city," Edward vowed.

"Mr. Cullen, until we have a statement from you and the other girl about where you were that night, you can't leave the county. So what will it be?"

Edward looked from Bella to Tanya to Rose. Rose nodded her head sadly and said, "Edward, you have to be honest with him."

Taking a deep breath, he turned toward Officer Daniels. "I'll talk."

They were just pulling into the parking garage, Rose driving them in her car when they all saw Emmett standing by the elevators. He didn't seem to plan to use them, he just stood there, waiting for them. Bella was sitting on the backseat beside him, her arms locked around his waist, she was asleep on his shoulder. "You need to talk to him, Rose," Edward said quietly.

"I know...I will..."

He turned to Bella, "Wake up, Bells. We're home. Come on."

She opened the door, half asleep and stepped out. He followed her and Tanya opened the front door on the same side. Before she could walk to her car, Bella called out to her to wait up. Edward watched Bella look around, as if to see if anyone was watching, before she got right up to his ex-girlfriend. It was low enough that just their group could hear it, "Tanya, I very slightly appreciate what you did today. If you ever pull the shit you did yesterday, I swear to God, I will make you regret it. This doesn't change anything. You can say whatever the fuck you want about that night. I don't care. Just remember that I have a shitload of nights with him I could talk about. If this goes to court, and I'm sure it will, we'll have to deal with each other. Until then, you stay the fuck away from my husband. Are we clear?"

"Whatever. I didn't do this for you. I did this for him," she said, taking off for her car.

Bella sat on the couch beside her husband and held their seventeen pound cat. He purred away while they talked. "Bad day," he said flatly.

"Yeah."

"Things are going to get worse for a little while. When Tanya's and my statement come out, reporters aren't going to leave us alone."

"I figured," she sighed.

"We could go visit Forks. You wanted to go down this weekend anyway, right? We could go."

"I don't know if I'm up for dealing with Jake right now, Edward. What if we stayed here and just locked ourselves away?"

"If that's really what you want but if you change your mind, we'll go. Just say the word. Things get too difficult, I'll have us in Forks in no time. Got it?"

A knock at the door made Jasper Cat's ears perk up and Bella jump. "Who could that be now? Is it too much to ask for everyone to leave us the hell alone?"

**I'm sorry I had to stop it there. It's getting way too long so you'll just have to deal with the suspense :) You know me, though, you probably won't have to wait too long! Review and tell me who you think is at the door! ;) Until next time, LP xoxo**


	27. Chapter 27

**I'll keep this short :) Thanks for the readers and reviewers and Cait. Please read the A/N at the bottom. I need your opinion...I suggest reading the chapter first though :) **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: A knock at the door made Jasper Cat's ears perk up and Bella jump. "Who could that be now? Is it too much to ask for everyone to leave us the hell alone?"**

Chapter 27

"Em, what the hell's going on?" Bella heard Edward ask as he stepped back to let his brother in. She craned her neck, still weighted down by her seventeen pound tabby.

Emmett pushed his way into the apartment and spun towards his younger brother. "What the fuck did you say to Rose?"

"Nothing. What are you talking about?" Edward asked, taking a step back. Bella dropped the cat as she stood up.

"She said that you told her that this marriage wasn't fair to me! That I couldn't have known what I was getting into when I married her! She stopped by about an hour ago. She's demanding a fucking divorce!"

"Em, I swear to you, I didn't mean for her to ask for a divorce! All I said was that she wasn't being fair to you! I was trying to defend you!"

"Just like when you told her not to have a baby with me? That your careers were too much to deal with that you couldn't add a child into the mix? Like when you told her you didn't want anymore kids?"

"Em..."

"Is this true?" Bella asked, stepping even farther away from him.

"Yes!" "No" Edward and Emmett each answered her at once.

She couldn't believe he would say that. Shaking her head, she spun around and went into the bedroom, slamming the door. A million thoughts ran through her mind. The first one was what had been plaguing her since they'd 'decided' to have another baby. She was the one that asked. She was upset and Edward, being Edward, wanted to make it better. He would have agreed to just about anything and she knew it.

The second thought that ran through her mind was what exactly he'd said to his sister-in-law. It was no secret that Emmett was angry and obviously hurt. _Could Edward's words have been twisted that badly?_

The third was a little more unsettling. Over the past week, Bella had been dizzy—really, really dizzy, which she suspected was the culprit of the episode the last time they'd had sex. _What if I'm pregnant already? _

Grabbing her phone, she flipped through the dates, trying to figure when the last time she'd gotten her period had been. She dug through her wallet, looking for a receipt she knew she'd had from the stores. It drove Edward nuts but she always threw receipts into her wallet. She was never late so she never worried about it. When she finally found the group of ones from the grocery store, she laid them out on the floor.

She ran her finger down each one, looking for some item abbreviation that might appear to be tampons...then she thought about it more. It had to have been before things happened with Mike. She finally found it and saw it was dated for over a month ago. After everything happened with Mike, a week later, Bella had been to get blood work. They'd told her from the test that she wasn't pregnant and had no diseases. The rape kit showed latex traces as well and a Plan B pill had followed the night it actually happened while she was in the hospital. It couldn't be Mike's. _Thank God for small fucking miracles._

What had her concerned now was, she had gotten her period about five weeks ago. She'd been with Edward about a week ago. _Could this really have happened this fast? _The chances seemed so slim to her. She tried to think if she'd experienced any symptoms and remembered the headaches she'd had the past could of days...this was how she'd found out about Edward Jr...they gotten so bad she'd gone to the doctors. _Please, God, don't do this to me right now. Give us more time. We obviously need more time!_

On the slim chance that there would be a pregnancy test in the bathroom, she tore the bathroom cupboard apart looking for one. Giving up, she was just about to try to find an excuse to run to the store when her husband knocked on the door. She threw everything back in, slamming the cupboard, and righting herself just in time for him to open the door. "Bella, look, Rose and Em both twisted my words..."

Not thinking, just wanting to get her hands on a damn test, Bella interrupted him, "Don't worry about it. I need to run into town. I'll be back."

"What do you need? I'm going to follow Emmett over to Kate's. We're both going to sit down and talk with Rose."

"Um...I'll get it..."

"You should take someone with you," Edward said in an anxious tone.

"I'll be fine. You worry too much," she said, kissing him on the cheek and grabbing her things off the side table by the door.

"I love you!" he called after her, she didn't turn around, she just kept going.

Edward still wasn't home by the time she'd gotten back. For the first time, she was grateful he was still out with his brother. She'd bought three tests and had already taken two of them. Both were negative. Grabbing Edward's laptop, Bella went to the search engine and started doing some research. She'd checked everywhere and received about a thousand different answers. Back to square one, she decided to go with the negative tests and chalked the rest up to her just being crazy.

There was definitely no way she and Edward should do this. Making a mental note to call the doctor the next day and clearing the history off of his computer, she tried calling him. He picked up the second time she called, telling her he was on his way home and they needed to sit down and talk. She sighed and flopped down onto the bed. _Will this terrible day ever fucking end?_ Before she knew it, she was sound asleep.

The next morning, Bella woke up and realized she wasn't alone. Confused, she looked over at her husband, who was hitting the snooze button and rolling back over. "Hey."

"Hey," he said, still half asleep.

"I see you changed me...and I didn't even notice it," Bella laughed.

"Yeah...I didn't want to wake you so I just pulled off your clothes and threw my shirt on you. You didn't even open your eyes," he smiled, pulling her towards him. "We need to talk about last night."

"I know...and I know what you're going to say. Edward, I get it. I'm not ready yet either. Let's just let it go for now and I'm making an appointment today to go back on the pill. Until then, and until they kick in, it's condoms for you, buddy."

"Fair enough," he said quietly. After a few awkward minutes, he told her about Emmett and Rosalie. Apparently the three of them sat down to talk the night before and Edward explained what he had meant—he just didn't want Rosalie's life to revolve around work when his brother needed her. He also told them about the whole baby situation.

"So it is true, then? You don't want one?"

"It's not that I don't, I just think it would be best to wait a little bit longer."

"Yeah."

Over the next two weeks, they hung out in the apartment and visited only family members. No one else tried to approach them but it was no surprise that a lot of people were interested in the story. There was really nothing new to say about it and after showing the same segment for three days, it eventually began to fade. The one thing that upset them the most was showing a picture of the house and the mention of their son. Other than that, they were beginning to breathe a little easier. Once court started, it would be a different story, but for now, they were just trying to enjoy the calm before the storm.

Bella, much to Edward's frustration, was not as calm as she could be. When he would ask her, she would just tell him she was anxious about testifying or she was just tired of everything that had been going on. In truth, her headaches weren't going away, she'd fallen twice from dizziness—though falling for her didn't exactly raise red flags for him, and she was beginning to wonder just how impossible this whole baby thing might actually be.

It was a Friday, two weeks after she realized a baby was not what her and her husband needed right now. The nagging feeling deep in her gut told her she needed to get out of denial. This was her second missed period—she couldn't even bring herself to take another test—she truly didn't want to know.

"Isabella?" A small, foreign-looking woman stood by the door with a clipboard in hand, "Isabella?"

She stood up, taking a deep breath, and followed her down the long hallway to a small room. It was a typical OBGYN office. A tray of tools sat against a wall, the typical table thingy with the stirrups, and a gown sitting there waiting for her. "So, Isabella, why are you here today?"

"I...I need birth control," she stammered as if she were a teenager again, having to ask this in front of her mother. What she really wanted to do was ask for a pregnancy test, she vowed to do it before taking any form of birth control, not wanting to harm the baby—well, the hypothetical baby.

"Okay," the woman said, looking at her curiously before jotting something down on her chart, "we'll do a regular check up on you then do some tests..."

"Tests?" Bella asked.

"Yes. A typical pap and then a blood test. We need to know you aren't pregnant."

Letting out an internal sigh of relief, Bella relaxed a little and saw the woman watching her. "When was your last period, Isabella?"

"Two months ago," Bella said quietly.

"Are you sexually active?"

"Yes," she whispered.

"Protection?"

"No," Bella said, looking down.

"Mrs. Cullen," the woman approached her, "you do realize you could be pregnant, right?"

Whether it was due to stress, the anxiety of the last couple of weeks, or the fear that it might be true, Bella surprised herself by bursting into tears. "I...I'm sorry...I was pregnant before. I lost...him..."

"There's no need to apologize," the woman said with a smile, "believe me, if you could see some of the reactions we get in here, you'd be shocked. Crying never hurt anyone."

Bella smiled slightly and took the tissue that was handed to her. "Why don't you get undressed, put this on, and try to relax until the doctor comes in. Everything happens for a reason."

"Well, everything looks good. It could take a couple hours to get the results from the tests," the doctor asked, pulling off her gloves. "Would you like to wait or do you want to leave a number and we'll call you?"

"I'll...um...I'll just leave a number."

Bella left and decided to drive over to Alice and Jasper's. When she went into the house, Alice was curled up watching a talk show, totally alone. "Where's Jazz and Livy?"

"Oh, Jasper took her for a ride over to get some groceries," Bella had never seen Alice looking this tired.

"Are you okay?" Bella asked, cuddling in next to her best friend.

"Yeah. I'm just not getting any sleep. Jazz is trying to help but with work it's difficult for him to get up with her. She's a fussy baby, colicky."

"Oh, well, if you ever need someone to babysit just let me know! I'm home a lot."

"Have you thought about going back to work?"

"I've just been volunteering at the hospital but I'm waiting to get the chance to..."her voice trailed off.

Instead of questioning her, Bella notice Alice was beginning to nod off. Feeling guilty for interrupting her friends chance to sleep, she quietly let herself back out. Halfway home, she decided to take Edward in some lunch. She'd been wondering over the past weeks how he couldn't be suspecting what she was. As a guy, she guessed he probably didn't think twice about periods or headaches.

When she arrived at Hale Law, Bella was surprised to hear high pitched giggling coming from the hallway leading to Edward's office. "Eddie!" she could now hear the giggler screeching her husband's name. Rounding the corning, she saw Natalia yell towards his open office door, "Son, if you don't leave the poor man alone, he's going to string you up by your toes!"

"It's fine, Nat. He just wants to play with my all my nice, neat, organized folders," Edward said good-naturedly.

"Of course it's fine for you! You don't do the organizing! I do!" Natalia laughed. When she saw Bella, she gave her a smile. "Alex, come on, Eddie has important company. Come sit with mommy until grammy gets here."

"Grammy!" the toddler who Edward was carrying over to his mother squealed. Bella was surprised, she hadn't realized he knew them quite that well. After her husband put down the little boy, he turned towards her and smiled when he saw who the 'important company' was before saying her name in surprise. "Bella."

"Hey. Got time for lunch?"

"Yeah. Deli down the street?"

"Lead the way, Mr. Cullen."

"So how are Em and Rose now? Any word about them?"

"Well, they aren't getting a divorce...I don't think. They are still fighting about this whole baby bullshit. I mean, I can see both of their sides. Em's older than me and he wants a kid. He doesn't want to be a senior citizen when his kids graduate. Then you have Rose. She's worked so hard to get where she is. She doesn't want to give that up for a baby right now."

"Would you?" Bella asked, deadpan. He stopped chewing and looked at her. "Edward, you're more desired of a lawyer than she is. People from other states want you to represent them. You've worked your ass off over the last couple years. Think of how far you've gotten in just two years."

"Where are you going with this, Bells?" Edward asked quietly, taking the last bite of his sandwich and sitting back in his seat. "I'm not going to lie to you and say that it would be the best thing for me right now but..."

"What about me? What about what's best for me?" Bella asked him, just as calmly as the last question.

"Bella, of course I want..."

Her phone began to ring, interrupting him. She looked down nervously, sure enough it was Women's Health Center calling. Glancing back and forth between her husband and her cell phone, she decided to let it ring, knowing they had permission to leave a message.

"Are you going to answer that?" Edward asked.

"Um...I don't know the number..." Bella lied, rather badly.

"I'm a lawyer, Bells. Even I weren't, you suck at lying. Who is it?"

"I can't tell you right now," Bella said, slowly, realizing how ridiculous she probably sounded after the fact.

"Bella," Edward said, annoyed, looking at his watch, "I really have to get back to the office. We'll talk tonight, okay?"

"Yeah, okay, I...um...I'm going to walk over to the hospital. Visit the kids. I'll get my car later." Bella said, standing up before he did. She just wanted to get away from him before she blurted it out. Walking away, she didn't look back at him until he called to her.

"Bells? Hey!" When she turned to face him, he asked from his seat, "Are you safe? Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm sorry...I have to go..."

"Hey, Cora," Bella said, somewhat cheerfully, dumping her purse behind the nurses station.

"Hey, Bella! Wasn't expecting you today. What's the occasion?"

"I was bored at home," Bella lied, touching her pocket that contained her cell phone.

"Awesome. Anyway, the kids are going to be thrilled." Cora laughed as they headed down to the large gathering room where the youngest of the hospital's patients did their art activities.

"Bella!" Three of the smallest kids exclaimed, running over and throwing their arms around her. A pair of tired looking parents looked up at her—Amy and Mark—their little boy had terminal cancer. They waved and went back to watching some tv show.

"Are you going to do art today?" the tiniest of the girls asked her.

"Today is a special day, Anna, we're going to read stories."

"YES!" a little boy yelled, even though Bella knew he probably had no idea about what was going on.

"Come, let's read," she said, motioning towards the 'speaker chair' as the kids had dubbed it the first week she had them present their projects. They gathered around, sitting cross-legged looking up at her. They were so trusting, so happy for the simple joy of being read to. _Will my baby enjoy these things? I really need to get a hold of myself and check that damn voicemail._

She went into her spiel about Dr. Seuss and his books. She read "Fox in Sox", "Are You My Mother", and "Horton Hears a Who". Even the parents came over to join them. When all three stories were finished, Bella gave hugs and headed out to find Cora.

"Those kids love you."

"They've grown on me, too, Cora. I'll see you Monday. Regular time. We're making hand print Turkeys!" Bella said with a tone of fake enthusiasm only a teacher could pull off authentically.

Walking past the nursery, the sound of crying rang out and she spun around, facing the room of newborn babies. Absently, she rubbed her belly and looked down at her flat stomach. Taking a deep breath and swallowing hard, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. Sure enough, there was a voicemail. "This message is for Isabella. This is Women's Health Center calling. If you could call us back..."

She closed her phone. If she wasn't pregnant, they would have told her they'd sent in the prescription. She had her answer. Needing to hear it from someone, she called them back. "Yes...this is Isabella Cullen...I was asked to call."

"Ah, yes, Isabella, let me find your doctor. Can you hold for a minute?" Sitting down on a hard bench, she felt tears coming to her eyes as the drab music began to play, letting her know she was put on hold. She bit down on her knuckle, trying to stop herself from sobbing. _I can't do this. Edward doesn't want this. I can't do this on my own. _For the millionth time, she prayed to have Edward Jr. back. For all of this to be a bad dream.

"Isabella?" The voice came over the phone, snapping her back to reality—reality, not a dream.

"Yes," she said quietly.

"Congratulations, Mrs. Cullen. You're pregnant."

After almost three weeks of anxiety, Bella finally had her answer. She hadn't been going crazy. This was real. Now, standing at Natalia's desk, Bella leaned over and whispered. "I need you to cancel his appointments today. Is there anything unavoidable that you can't do it?"

"No. I can pull it off. Trenton's not in today anyway. Mrs. Cullen, are you okay?" Bella heard her ask when she reached for the doorknob of her husbands office. Not knowing how to answer, she just simply didn't. Turning the knob, she pushed the door open, relieved to find him alone. An audience would have been too much to handle.

"Natalia, I really don't have time...Bella?" He looked shocked to see her but that shock turned to fear. Coming around the desk, he stopped when she held her hands up.

"No. Just...I need to tell you something..."

"Bells?"

_I'm pregnant._ "I need you. I really, really need you. I'm so sorry," she burst into tears.

He grabbed her and pulled her down into a chair with him. "Tell me what's going on. You're scaring the hell out of me, Bells."

"I went to the doctor today...I'm...Edward_..._I'm pregnant."

**So, I'm kind of at a bit of a predicament and need some opinions. I have an idea for another story and would like to give it a go. It's another Edward/Bella story. I could continue this story straight through or I could do a couple chapters more of this one, wrap it up, and start the other one. I WOULD COME BACK TO THIS STORY. I just don't have the ability to keep two stories straight at once. So, it's up to my readers. Are you ready for a new story or do we want to keep going with this one? **


	28. Chapter 28

**This was like the longest I've gone without updating and I apologize. I've felt like crap the past couple of days. I have decided to finish this story out before starting the next one. I know a lot of you were pretty set on that. I'm here to please :) **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "I went to the doctor today...I'm...Edward_..._I'm pregnant."**

**Chapter 28**

"Why are you sorry? Bella, stop. Why are you crying?"

"You don't want this! I don't know if I want this! I'm going to be on my own to do everything because you'll be working...and traveling...and I'll be at home with our baby..."

"Do you really think I would be able to do that? That I would be able to just leave the two of you like that? You're delusional if you think I could even consider it. We both created this baby and I'm happy that we did. Please, please, stop crying. Do you think I work too much now? I've taken a lot of time off lately..."

Bella grabbed a tissue from the box on his desk and blew her nose. "I'm sorry...I've been crying a lot lately...you don't work too much. I'm just scared about doing this. I'm sorry."

"Quit apologizing! So, you can't be that far along..."

"About three weeks," Bella interrupted him.

"Wow, we're going to have a baby."

"Yeah. I'm, uh, kind of still in shock."

He looked at his watch, "Bells, I have a client coming in..."

"No, you don't," she said, looking at him from beneath her hair, "I had Natalia cancel them."

"Sweetie, you can't just cancel my appointments," he said as if scolding a small child.

"Do you want me to go stop her?" Bella half-teased, knowing he wouldn't want her to.

He looked between his wife and the door, then glanced down at his watch. "Well, no. I only have an hour left and Trenton's not around anyway...let's just go."

"So when can we start telling people?" Edward asked, overly excited, once they were finally back at the apartment.

"Not for a little while. I'm only a few weeks along and it's probably a good idea to hold off a little."

"Alright, I agree. What about furniture? Are you going to keep the old stuff? We need to find a house. I don't think we'll need another shower and it's not like we can't afford everything anyway..." he went on and on before Bella reached up and put her had over his mouth.

"I love you. I love that you're excited about this. I still can't get my hopes up, though. Just give me some time, okay?"

"Alright, okay," he said, as if making a mental note to do so. "There is one thing. The house...or lack there of...we need somewhere to live and that's something that could take awhile. Will you at least let me get the old house fixed up and start looking for new ones."

"I think the apartment is plenty of space for the two of us and a baby."

"Bella, eventually that baby is going to be a little kid who needs a bedroom. Do you really think it's a good idea having to carry a baby carrier from the parking garage up to here? I don't want you to have to walk through the parking garage with the baby let alone having to carry him or her all the way. We can look together. I won't do anything unless you agree that it's perfect. I'd feel better if we were somewhere a little more away from the city."

"Fine. We should probably go over to the old house and get it fixed up. I definitely agree with that. Tomorrow's Saturday, why don't you call and talk to Emmett?"

The next day, Bella and Edward made their way to the old house. Bella still felt chills down her spine when she looked at the front of the house. The broken window was just a reminder of what could have happened to her. When they went into the house, she felt sick when she thought of the night Carlisle practically carried her downstairs, the night she'd lost her baby. Then of course was the reminder of something she would never forgive herself for. Just the front door reminded her of Edward leaving. She never wanted to think of him leaving again.

Sitting down on the top of the two steps into the living room, she tried to remind herself that he _wasn't_ leaving, that she was going to have another little baby, and Mike was in jail—she could rest easy knowing what happened to her wouldn't happen to someone else because of him. Suddenly, the messy room needed to be cleaned. Unable to stand looking at it, Bella went into the kitchen and pulled the cleaning bucket and bleach from the cupboard. Armed with the bleach-water bucket, gloves, a couple rags, and a garbage bag, she went in to conquer the room.

Edward watched her from outside, where he was picking glass up off the porch. He'd taken the tarp down and yelled in to be careful picking up the glass. About to begin, she heard the door open and saw Alice and Rose come in. Alice had baby Livy and Jasper and Emmett were out on the porch with Edward. Alice gasped when she looked around the room. "Oh, Bella..."

"Okay, we are so helping you clean this up today. Alice, go put the baby in the next room, we'll hear her if she wakes up. I'll start picking up glass. Bella, you start scrubbing down the walls and carpets. Alice, you put everything back that isn't broken. We'll get this place clean in no time," commanded Rosalie.

No one said anything after that, just began to clean. When Bella cried while trying...and failing...to get the crimson stains out of her white carpet, the girls gave her space. Once everyone had everything else clean, they stepped quietly outside and Edward came in a few seconds later. The new window was in and the porch was being re-stained. "Bella? Hey, it's okay. The stains aren't going to come out."

Frustrated, she threw down the scrub brush and wiped away the tears that were staining her cheeks. "I want this all to go away. Everything is stained. I can't change anything! I lost a baby. I was raped. I spend almost a year without you because I was too damn stubborn to stop and think about how amazing you were. I can't get any of that time back."

"No, you can't. You can look forward to tomorrow though, Bells. This was the hardest year of my life and I refuse to sit back and let any of it happen again. Just think, in less than nine months, we're going to be parents. We're back together. Forever. You're stuck with me now, angel. I refuse any alternative. I'm not asking you to forget things happened. Just try to be happy."

"I am happy. I just really, really want to get this carpet clean. Who the hell chose white carpeting anyway? Edward Jr. would have been getting into everything now. Could you imagine a toddler in a living room with white carpeting? What the hell were we thinking?"

Edward laughed in spite of the situation, "You picked it. Something about the room looking brighter..."

"Alright, alright," she muttered, taking his hand and letting him pull her to her feet.

"We demand to be paid in food! Pizza. We want pizza!" Emmett voice rang out from the porch.

Bella laughed and followed Edward out to join everyone. "Where do you want it from?" Edward asked, pulling out his phone.

"Doesn't matter. The greasier the better!" His older brother hollered.

"Husband, you are going to die from high cholesterol before you're old enough to retire!"

Just as Rosalie finished her sentence, a shrill cry filled the air. "I'll get her," Jasper said, heading into the house to get his daughter.

By the time pizza was ordered, it was turning into evening and they'd all made their way into the living room. Edward had brought a couple blankets down to lay over the stained floor. "So what's happening tonight? It's a Saturday, we're all together, we need to do something!" Emmett said over everyone's chatter.

"What did you have in mind?" Jasper asked.

"I don't know...we don't have to go out...we can stay in."

"Would you guys mind if we all just hung out here tonight?" Alice asked them.

Edward looked at Bella with a questioning look. After a moment of awkward silence, Bella wrapped her arms around herself and nodded. "It's fine. We don't have cable here or anything anymore."

"Yeah and I'm pretty sure the fridge is empty. We'll have to run and get something to drink and snack on. Maybe we could rent a movie?" Edward suggested.

"Yeah! Just like the old college days!" Alice exclaimed, scaring Olivia and making her cry. "Okay, so maybe not exactly like the old college days..."

Jasper laughed and picked up his daughter to calm her down. Edward, who was standing right behind her, wrapped his arms around his wife. He was talking to Emmett about running to the store and Bella felt him absently put his hand over her belly. She ducked away from him and turned in time to see his face fall. Soon, he recovered and realized what happened.

"Alright, well, we need a grocery list..." Rosalie put in.

"Okay. Um, we'll grab some soda..." Edward began.

"And beer," added Emmett.

"Popcorn!" Alice exclaimed.

"And beer," Emmett said again, this time exaggerating it.

"Gee, Em, just tell us what you really want us to buy," Bella joked, rolling her eyes.

"Oops, sorry. We'll pick you up some wine, sunshine!" Emmett shot back.

"Oh...umm..."

"No...ugh..." Edward and Bella both tried to respond at the same time.

Emmett looked back and forth between them and Bella shot Edward a look, letting him know that he needed to shut up and let her handle it. "I have to get some blood work done on Monday. Having alcohol in my system isn't the best idea..." Bella had no idea how long alcohol stayed in the bloodstream but Emmett totally bought it.

"Alright, we'll get you some soda, then."

"No...I don't like soda?" Bella realized it came out more of a question than a statement but it was too late. She'd always been a terrible liar.

"Bella, what's going on?" Her brother-in-law asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing. She's just been trying to eat a little more consciously and I don't think she's convinced herself yet that she doesn't need the sugary soda. We'll grab some juice while we're out. I'm sure Ally doesn't want alcohol or soda either. I'll grab popcorn and snacks too. Who wants to go for a ride?"

She let out the breath she'd been holding. Never had she been so relieved that Edward could lie that easily and sound so convincing. Once the guys were gone, the girls played with the baby and got things settled. "Oh, I wanted to ask you, got any books I could borrow? Being off work I have lots of time to read and I know you have as many books as the freaking Library of Congress."

Bella laughed, "Yeah, come on, I'll take you to it."

Alice stopped in her tracks as soon as she walked through the doors of the entertainment room. "Pappy's piano..." she whispered.

"Yeah. Edward's pride and joy," Bella smiled.

Bella watched as Alice walked over to it and ran her hand along the smooth black surface. Looking down at the little girl in her arms, Alice said, "This was your Great Grandpappy Cullen's. You're Uncle Edward would sit for hours and listen to him play." Alice teared up, turning around and running her hands over the shelves of music books Edward had right behind the piano bench.

"Are you okay, Ally?" Rose asked. Bella wanted had wondered the same but couldn't form the words.

"Yeah...I just...it brings back a lot of memories. Edward used to drive us nuts when we were little, constantly banging on the keys. Eventually, he realized if you hit them a certain way it sounded better..thank God for that," laughed Alice.

It was that point that Bella knew, without a doubt, what the name of their little baby would be if it were a boy. William Anthony Cullen. Fighting the urge to touch her own belly, she went over and picked up a few books from her shelves. "Here, these should be good. Let me know if you need more..."

Edward came back into the house carrying a case of beer and four large pizzas. Emmett followed with Jasper close behind. They had a gallon of milk, soda, chips, pretzels, popcorn, wine coolers—for Rosalie, and paper products to eat off of. Once all the food was set out, on the floor, and everyone was eating, Edward asked Bella to join him in the kitchen.

"If this is too much for you just let me know and we'll leave, alright?"

"Edward, I'm fine."

"Is the pizza okay? Do you need something else to eat? I bought some bread and some healthier things for you just in case. Why don't you..."

"Edward Anthony, please back off. I love you and I appreciate it but...shit!"

"What?"

"My vitamins. I was supposed to have picked them up last night and forgot."

"I'll run and get them!" Edward said immediately, grabbing his keys. He had no idea if they were dire or not but didn't want to risk it. The look Bella gave him was telling him this was clearly not a life or death situation. "Or not..."

"Come on, let's finish dinner and start the movie, I'm already tired..."

"Okay and for future reference, from now on, let your lawyer husband do the lying."

"Yeah, about that, should I be concerned that you're so damn good at it?" Bella asked only half-joking.

"I don't lie to you. When I do, I guilt myself into telling you anyway. You have nothing worry about." Edward knew she had a point, though. He watched her walk back into the living room and smiled. He couldn't believe he was really going to be a father. This was finally happening. It might not be perfect timing for them but his career, his social life, everything, was officially on the back burner. That baby was never going to be taken for granted as long as Edward was alive.

"Edward, we're starting the movie!" Jasper called to him.

One rented movie turned into three movies, one being the rental and two that they owned. Now, everyone was lying on the couches and the floor, mostly asleep. No one really said anything about it until about four in the morning when Olivia decided she was hungry. Alice got up to feed her and that's when it started.

Edward had fallen asleep, spooning Bella as they laid on the bigger couch together. When the crying started, he felt his wife jump and stand up. She walked hastily towards the stairs and began to head upstairs. "Bella?" Edward called softly, wondering what she was doing.

Everyone was pretty much stirring and turned to look at him. Groaning from sore muscles he got off the couch and followed her, the company getting comfortable again. Edward's heart twisted when he realized what had happened. Bella thought she heard her baby crying. He found her a little dazed and staring down into Edward Jr.'s crib. With tears in her eyes, his wife turned to look at him, "I never heard him cry."

"Bells," Edward hugged her and thought for a minute, trying to find something to say that could help ease the pain in even the tiniest way. Finally, he whispered with tears in his eyes, "You never heard him because he'd never had the chance to be sad. Our little boy found peace before most do in this world."

Taking his wife by the arm, he led her to their bedroom and sat her down on the bed. Kneeling in front of her, he took both her hands. "Bella, do you remember how we would fight? We'd find one little thing and pick at each other for hours? I really don't think we were ready to be parents, much less than we are now. Maybe, in his own little way, Edward Jr. was just making sure that we would never take his other brothers and sisters for granted.

I love him. I love him more than I've ever loved anyone else, even now, so please don't get upset with me for saying this. The new baby needs us. It needs me to protect you both but it needs you even more. You can't let yourself stress, it's not good for either of you. I know you're scared. I know you want to pound your fists on the floor and cry but it's not going to bring our son back and it's not going to help this baby either."

"I know..."

"I love you," Edward interrupted her from doing what he knew was coming next, apologizing. Missing their son. Trying to heal from a traumatic assault. Neither of these were things to apologize for. Sitting beside her, his lips found hers. The kiss had just deepened when there was a soft knock on the door. It was Jasper.

"You guys okay? I got up to check on Ally and Livy and Bella's phone was lightin' up on the counter. I think someone was tryin' to call her," his best friend drawled.

Bella got up and took the phone from him. "Oh dear."

"Who is it?" Edward asked as Jasper went back downstairs.

"It's Leah."

"Can I call her back?" Bella asked, sitting back down on the bed.

Rolling his eyes, he picked up the phone himself and hit the green send button before handing it over to her. "Bella?" Leah's voice sounded a little strained.

"Yeah, Leah, what's..."

"I'm sorry to call so late but I really don't know what to do anymore. Your dad had to arrest Jake this morning..."

"What?" Bella practically yelled.

"Oh, yeah, it's been an interesting night here. Jake's been having some drinking issues since he went to find you. He showed up to Emily's, totally trashed, and tried to pick a fight with Paul. Emily had to call the police, Bells. What else was she going to do..."

"Try to get him to calm down! It's Jake! He's harmless!"

"Emily didn't want to take the chance with Lily! Look, I'm calling because he'll listen to you. Please, just talk to him. He's going to end up like Quil."

Bella was appalled that Leah would call her like this. Leah should be the one handling him. It was her cheating that started all of the problems. "Leah, you need to talk to him. You did this!"

"Oh, please," Leah bit out, obviously not expecting the conversation to turn in this direction. "You're little late nights with him is what started all of this. I slept with Paul because you were sleeping with him. Don't you dare try to play Miss High and Mighty. It might work on Jake and that naïve husband of yours but it won't work on me!"

Before Bella could fight with her, Leah hung up. "Edward..."

"I'll be downstairs," he said, quietly getting up and heading for the door.

"I never slept with him!" Bella called out.

"I get it. I'll be downstairs." Bella watched her husband walk away, hands in the pockets of his old sweatpants. She had never slept with Jake before. Ever. Nor would she ever. She looked at her phone, debating about whether or not to call her dad. Eventually, deciding against it, she headed back downstairs.

Everyone seemed to be back to snoring softly, except Edward, he was sitting on the floor with his niece. Little Olivia was sprawled on a soft blanket, smiling in her sleep—her parents were beside her pretty much doing the same. Tears formed in her eyes as she watched her husband with the tiny little girl. Finally realizing she was standing there, Edward held his arms out to her. She immediately snuggled into his chest.

"See ya, in a few hours at moms!" Edward called to Alice and Jasper as they loaded their daughter into the car. The group had gotten up around eight and had a cold pizza breakfast before heading home. They pulled into the parking garage of the apartment around ten thirty and were on their way to the elevators when she saw a pretty girl hitting the 'up' button. When the walked up to her, the doors slid open and Edward finally got off his phone before they stepped in beside her. The girl looked forward, indifferent to them, until five seconds later when she glanced over, then did a double take. Edward was still messing with his phone and Bella leaned back against the railing on the back of the elevator.

"Edward?" Bella's head snapped in the girls direction as she watched the pretty blonde take a few steps closer to her husband, obviously forgetting Bella was even there.

"Huh?" Edward asked absently before looking up from his phone. His whole body tensed and he looked like he wanted to run.

"How have you been? I've been meaning to call you. You know, I'm going out tonight, maybe we could meet up and..."

"Don't. Keira, this is Bella...my wife," Edward said, obviously making a point, and grabbed for Bella's hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize...I thought the divorce..."

"We called it off."

Realization hit Bella. This was the girl. The daughter of the landlord. Digging her nails into her palms to keep from hitting the hot blonde who fucked her husband, Bella took a deep breath. Edward had told her it was a one-night stand but how often did they run into each other? _Was she living here? _She didn't know what to do. She knew what she wanted to do but that wouldn't be a very good idea—she was pregnant. A fight in an elevator probably wouldn't be good for her baby.

The other woman was still gawking at her husband, clearly imagining what they had done together. Wrapping her arms around Edward, Bella stood on her toes and kissed her husbands neck. For the second time, Edward let his hand end up on her stomach—this time Bella was glad. The door slid open and to Bella's annoyance, the girl stepped out the same time Edward went to. _Awesome, she's on the same floor. _Whether it was hormone's or jealousy, Bella would never know but she said loud enough for the girl to hear, "So that's the slut you picked up for a one night stand?"

What happened next made Bella work extra hard to not smash her fist into the pretty blonde's perfect face. The girl turned toward Edward with a smile and shrugged her shoulders before saying, "I'm three doors away from you, ya know. Besides, it's not like you weren't married the last time. I would totally understand if you needed more than her some night. I'll be looking forward to it."

**Next update should be tomorrow :) **


	29. Chapter 29

**Words can not express the gratitude I have for everyone who reviewed this chapter. Good or bad, you took time to review for me and so I made sure I stayed up last night to finish this chapter. I had more reviews for the last chapter than any other one and I freaking love it! I know there were some concerns but I think most of you will be happy with the outcome :) Read, enjoy, and keep on reviewing! (In this case, it really did make me type faster) Also, after the first few paragraphs, we jump ahead a little, don't get too confused :) Cait, thanks for everything!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: What happened next made Bella work extra hard to not smash her fist into the pretty blonde's perfect face. The girl turned toward Edward with a smile and shrugged her shoulders before saying, "I'm three doors away from you, ya know. Besides, it's not like you weren't married the last time. I would totally understand if you needed more than her some night. I'll be looking forward to it."**

**Chapter 29**

Edward grabbed Bella around the waist, knowing his wife was not going to take that well, and faced the blonde. "Look, Kiera, it was a one time thing. You know as well as I do that I didn't know you were living here now. You told me you weren't even living in Washington. Please, stay away from my wife. What happened with us was a mistake."

Bella's heart swelled and she wanted to give him a high-five and dance around like a little kid. The look on the girl's face was priceless as she shook her head and walked away, opening a door that was exactly three away from theirs. Once they were inside the apartment, she spun toward him. "Why can't they be ugly? Like, why can't they have one damn flaw. Like a missing tooth...or bad hair..."

"Bella..."

"I mean, they are fucking gorgeous! Tanya looks like she could be a fucking playboy playmate and that girl looks like a fucking sports illustrated swimsuit model! You couldn't have fucked someone with bad skin or just simply someone plain, like me. That I could deal with...not all these girls that look like models!"

"Isabella! You are so damn beautiful."

"Yeah," Bella snorted, rolling her eyes. "I'm going to shower before we leave for your parents..."

Bella stood in the shower, knowing she really just needed to get over it. He didn't deserve to be treated like shit over something that was partially her fault. She did wish the girls could have been a little less pretty. When her shower was over, she wrapped a towel around herself and made her way back to Edward—who was relaxing on the couch.

"I'm sorry. I'm jealous," she stated the two facts flatly.

"It's okay. You have your reasons to get mad. Hell, I'm mad at her. It doesn't matter though because you're here now, not her. You're the only woman who will ever have that opportunity for as long as I live. You're the only woman who will ever have my children."

"Can I ask you something?" Bella asked, looking him in the eyes.

"Anything," he said it with absolute certainty and no hesitation.

"Did you ever bring the girls back here?"

"No. Never."

"Okay," she said happily, snuggling into him and closing her eyes, drifting off before having to be at Esme's.

"Dad, look I get it, but what the hell do you want me to say to him? 'Hey, heard you are going off the deep end but get over it because we still can't be friends?' I mean, really?" Bella huffed into her phone. Edward felt guilty. He watched her shake her head as she listened to her father's response, which he couldn't hear.

"This isn't because of Edward, dad. This is because Jake wants to be something more than friends and it can never be that way. I'm _married_!" It was because of him and he knew it. To his best knowledge, and Bella really was a terrible liar, they had never slept together. He'd be lying if he said he was unaware of the fact that he'd pretty much swept her off her feet that summer and at the same time, taken her away from Jake.

"Look, I'll talk to my _husband_ and see what he thinks. I have a lot going on right now between the counseling sessions, working with the kids at the hospital, and all this crap with Mike. I don't have time for this!" Edward looked down at his wife's stomach that had begun to stick out a little bit more than normal. She was now almost three months along and they really couldn't wait much longer to tell people before they began to wonder. He hated that she was under all that stress.

It was almost as if she was thinking about it to, her hand going to her stomach, she said, "Dad, Edward and I are going to be visiting soon. Maybe while we're down there I'll try to talk to him. No promises, though."

When she finally hung up, Bella let out a loud breath and threw her phone onto the couch. It had been about a month ago that her father had called her the first time to try to get her to have a heart-to-heart with her childhood best friend. "Edward, I'm really going to need to talk to him. Even if it's just to get my dad off my back. He thinks you're keeping me from doing it..."

"Bella, I sort of am. Not that I'm going to apologize for it but maybe...I mean...it wouldn't kill me to let you try to talk to the guy. It's been awhile since you've even seen him and maybe it would help. Not that I really care about him but I don't want to see him kill himself."

"You really wouldn't mind?"

"No. Like you said, we should really start talking to people about the baby. You'll be three months along in a couple days. The first big appointment is tomorrow already. Let's go down after that and tell Charlie. While there, you and Jake can talk."

"When do you want to go?"

"What about tomorrow after the doctor's appointment? I'm leaving work early to go with you and we can just leave straight from there. We'll break the news to my family when we get back, although, I think Jasper knows already—so Alice probably does too."

"I can't believe we didn't get to see him for Christmas! I used to spend all my Christmases in Forks with dad."

"Yeah but it was nice that he got to get away with Billy for awhile. Not going to lie, it was also nice to not have to travel. The roads kind of sucked and I wouldn't have wanted to risk it with you."

She slid closer to him and he pulled her onto his lap. Lifting her shirt, he rubbed his hand over her tiny bump. "How are you feeling today?"

"Better than yesterday. I just don't know if I should be showing this much yet. It hadn't happened this quickly with my first pregnancy. I also feel completely worn out, all the time."

"You don't think you're farther along then we thought, do you?"

"We couldn't be. We didn't start having sex til about three months ago."

"I want you to know that I'm not going to leave you...either of you...but is it possible that Mike..."

"No. Please, let's not even consider that. I went through all the precautions to make sure that didn't happen. I'm sure this baby is just bigger. I also lost a little weight since the last time...maybe you can just see it better?"

Edward nodded in agreement but he also wondered why she was a little bigger than he would have expected. She didn't even start to show until she was four months along when she was pregnant with Edward Jr. "Just think, next Christmas we'll have our own little baby to buy crazy amounts of toys for, even when the baby will have no idea what's happening."

"Yeah, that was kind of ridiculous. I'm fairly certain Jasper is considering buying a bigger house just to fit all of Livy's presents in it."

"Everyone was just excited, there hasn't been a little one in your family for so long."

"Well, what are we going to do about a bigger place. I know you're avoiding it but we really, really need to decide."

"How about we go over and check out what baby stuff we have tonight. I need to start a registry for the shower your sister is insisting she throw. I don't need one, Edward! We have everything!" Bella knew she was changing the subject but he went along with it.

"She just wants to have a party. Besides, we gave away all the diapers and smaller things to Alice. This little one's going to need bottles and things. I'm up for riding over there if you want to. I've been writing a small piece and would really like to play it. We could just hang out there this evening..."

Edward's phone began to ring, interrupting him. "It's Alice, I'll put it on speaker," he said, flipping it open and hitting the button on the side, "Hey, Al, you're on speaker. Bella is right here with me."

"Oh! Hey, Bella! I hate to do this and feel free to say no but Jasper got tickets from work to go to a musical tonight and I haven't been out of the house without Livy since before I was pregnant. Would you consider watching her for a little while tonight? It'll only be a couple hours...I know you just got home from work, Edward..."

"No, it's fine, Al. When are you bringing her?"

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Then some shuffling and he could hear her yell to Jasper in the background, "Jazz! They said yes! Get her dressed! I'll bring her over in about an hour."

"Hey, Al, why don't you bring her to the house? We're headed over there now."

"Okay! See ya!"

They had come back to the house a couple times since things were fixed up. New carpet was put down, the porch had been re-stained, and now the tables that once had lamps on them stood empty. For the first time in a long time, Bella walked up the stairs of the beautiful white brick house and didn't feel scared. She was home. A strange feeling began to form in her stomach as she thought about someone else living in it. This was _their_ home.

Edward was already making his way into the house, obviously excited to get to the piano. She walked in and headed up to the nursery. They'd had a small get together with the family there a few weeks ago right before Christmas and the crib had toys in it from when Olivia had been playing. Straightening things up, Bella opened the closet and pulled out a couple of the boxes that she knew had baby stuff in them still. Most of it had been given to Alice, right after Alice had Livy, Bella had wondered if she were pregnant but was in serious denial. Knowing Alice didn't need boy clothes, she had kept them. She began to pull them out one by one to see if they were all still okay. Everything looked fine but she made a mental note that if it was a boy, she needed to rewash everything.

When she went back downstairs, she heard a beautiful melody and was about to make her way to the entertainment room when she heard a knock at the door. Pulling the door open, she came face to face with Jasper as he held out his daughter and her diaper bag. "Ally's waitin', we're runnin' a little late. If you have questions just call. Everythin's in there. We really, really appreciate it!"

"No problem. It's not like everyone in your family has a fully functional nursery," laughed Bella.

"Is that Edward?" Jasper asked, trying to look into the house.

"Yeah," Bella said with a smile lighting up her face and tears in her eyes, "Jazz, he's composing again."

Jasper surprised her by pulling her into a hug—knowing that his best friend was finally happy just like she did. "That's amazing. The boy's really freaking talented. Tell him we said hi."

When he was gone, she carried baby Olivia in and sat down on her little chaise lounge. Edward smiled at them and continued to play. It was a peaceful, relaxing melody and Bella found herself instinctively beginning to rock Olivia back and forth, careful not to put pressure on her own little baby. When Olivia closed her eyes, Bella sat back and brought her legs up so that she could close her own without the risk of dropping her neice. Before she could drift off, Edward stopped playing and picked up the baby.

Nudging her arm, he tried to wake her up. She groaned in protest and wiggled back further so that she could lay down completely. Edward's footsteps eventually faded away and she gave into her exhaustion. When she woke back up, she was in their bed upstairs. Reaching for Edward and realizing he wasn't there, she jumped up and headed out the door and stopped in front of the nursery. The door was open a crack and Bella could hear her husbands voice singing to Olivia. She peaked in and watched as he rocked her and sang.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Hey."

"Is she asleep?"

"Yeah. She woke up when I brought you upstairs. I've been trying to get her to sleep."

Despite the loving tone he used to sing to his niece, Bella could tell he was a little flustered. She stepped towards him and Olivia woke up, screaming bloody murder. Edward groaned and began to rock her again, obviously frustrated.

"Hey, calm down. She's reacting to you being stressed."

"She's been crying for almost an hour now! I...I don't know what to do."

"Honey, here, give her to me. I think you're making it worse by raising your voice," Bella said, reaching for her.

"No. I can do this, Bella." His voice was getting louder. "Please."

"Edward, you just need to relax..."

"I'm not ready. What if I can't do this? What if my baby hates me? What if it just cries and cries and I can't make I can't make things better?"

"Edward, you're just scared. It's okay to be scared..."

"No it isn't! I'm supposed to be taking care of you. I'm supposed to be supportive and protect you and our baby! I'm not supposed to be scared!"

Olivia cried louder now, squiggling and kicking her feet. Bella didn't want to make her husband feel worse but she couldn't let him upset their little niece like he was. "Edward, I think you might be scaring her, please just let me calm her down and we can talk." He handed her the baby and stood up. When she sat down to continue their discussion, he left the room.

Around ten, Bella heard Edward let Alice and Jasper in. She picked up the now-sleeping baby from the crib and headed down to meet them. Giving a small smiled to Edward, which he didn't return, Bella handed the little girl to her mother. The tension between the two of them was obvious. "Is everything okay? Did something happen with Livy?"

"No, everything was fine. She was great."

"Good. Hey, do you mind if I grab a drink of water from the kitchen?"

"No, go for it," Bella smiled at Alice before asking Jasper how the evening went. Edward said nothing at all until Alice returned, then he just gave a polite goodbye as they headed to the car. Alice shot her an almost sympathetic look before giving her a hug. As soon as the door was shut, Bella turned and hugged her husband.

"You can't let one fussy little baby scare you off, Edward Cullen. You have to realize, this was the first time she was away from Ally and Jazz both. Our little baby will recognize us and our voices. Please, I need you to stay positive. As long as you love him or her, that's all that matters."

"I'm sorry. I guess I just got frustrated. I love you both. It's just all kind of overwhelming."

"I know. I realize that a baby is a lot of work. You have to promise me something, though. You _will _tell me if things get too frustrating for you. I won't judge you but I don't want you to get angry with him or her. Okay?"

"Yeah," he said, kissing her forehead and going to put on his shoes, "Well, I guess we should head home."

"Edward?" Bella said, not moving to get hers, bracing herself for what he'd say.

"Yeah?" He asked absently sliding his on and turning toward her.

"You look exhausted...and I'm really tired...do you think maybe we could stay home tonight? I mean...here,_ here_ tonight?"

He smiled and kicked his shoes back off before carrying her bridal style to their bedroom. Once they were in bed, she snuggled into him. "So all I had to do was change the carpets?" Edward asked jokingly, though Bella knew he was actually curious.

"I don't know. I just...this place feels more like home to me. Hearing you play tonight, watching you in the nursery with Olivia, I guess I'm just seeing what could have been a year ago."

"Is that good?" Edward asked cautiously.

"Yes, very. Would you be mad if I wanted to stay here? Like, forever?" Bella half-whispered.

"You'd want that?" Edward raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Yeah, I guess I do. I mean...if it's what you want..."

"Bells, we could live in a cardboard box and that would still be home to me. Although, I don't really want our son or daughter growing up in a cardboard box...but you get the idea. So, do you want to live here again?"

"Yeah...yeah I do."

"Okay then, angel. I just have one thing that needs to be asked. Don't get mad. Are we just doing this because you ran into Kiera or something? Is that why you want out of the apartment as soon as possible I'm only asking because I don't want you to be uncomfortable here because of that...issue." He said, as if he couldn't find the right word for the girl.

"No. No, I _am_ tired of running into her, it happens way too much...but I really do love this place. Edward, what's done is done. We can't change our past, just plan our future. Had you acted like a total ass towards her or if you treated me like I wasn't there while you talked to her than I probably wouldn't forgive you. I guess I'm just over it now."

"I love you," he said, kissing her on the lips this time. "Time for sleep. We have to get up early enough for me to drive back to the apartment to grab my clothes for work."

The next morning, they had breakfast together before dealing with Seattle traffic while trying to get home. Edward's gaze fell on the stack of papers sitting on the edge of the counter. Though they had been overlooked before, Bella now saw them to. She picked them up and said, "We can throw these away...you don't have to worry about this anymore...ever."

"I know," he said quietly, watching her drop them into the garbage.

They made it back early enough and once Edward was showered, shaved, and dressed, he told her goodbye and said he'd pick her up around two. Bella got dressed and began to pack for their Forks trip after calling her dad to tell him they were coming. She really didn't know what to expect from her father when it came to Edward. She could understand from his point of view how things looked.

Flipping on the music channels, she danced around, packed, and eventually got lunch. The morning had flown by and now she just had to wait about fifteen more minutes before Edward called to tell her he was in the garage and on his way up. Finding herself in front of their full length mirror, she lifted her shirt and looked at her bump. She still couldn't believe how much she was showing and made a mental note to ask the doctor about it.

"Are you ready?" Edward asked from the doorway, making her jump and spin around.

"God, don't scare me like that!"

"I'm sorry. You look worried. Are you alright?" He asked, peering at her.

"Just kind of nervous..."

"There's nothing to be nervous about. It's just a routine check up. They aren't even able to really tell us the sex of the baby. I'm sure we won't be there long."

"I know. I'm just being paranoid." Bella sighed after putting a protective hand over the baby.

"I'm assuming the pile of bags by the door needs taken downstairs to the car."

"Yep."

"I'll start hauling and let you know when I'm done."

"Sounds good. I'm going to make sure Jasper Cat is set with enough food to last a couple days before we leave."

The same nurse from before lead them back to the room and flipped open the chart. "Ah, Isabella Cullen. I remember you from a couple months ago. I take it we're a little less...stressed?"

"Yeah. Sorry about that. I guess I just panicked and...it was stupid. This is my husband, Edward. He's actually really happy about the pregnancy."

"See. All that worrying for nothing."

Edward realized what must have happened the last time and felt guilty that he had been so willing to think that she couldn't possibly have gotten pregnant so quickly. He never should have mentioned anything about not wanting a baby. In fact, he regretted not being open enough with her that she would have even told him about the appointment. He should have been there when she found out. Rose's little bitch fest had really rubbed off on him.

After flipping through more papers, the nurse smiled. "Okay, so you're here today for a routine check up to see how the baby's progressing."

"Yep."

"Alright, here's a gown, you can get changed and the doctor will be in shortly."

The doctor was a short little lady with big glasses and frizzy black hair that stuck out everywhere. She greeted them warmly before asking Bella to lie back so she could check her. Bella had told him that their old doctor had retired last year. Edward figured she hadn't seen any problems because she stood up and put her stethoscope to her ears. "I'm just going to check your heart beat and the heart beat of the baby's. We aren't really going to be able to see much on the ultrasound just yet. I'll have you come back in another month or so and then we'll do one." Putting the shiny silver circle to Bella's stomach she went to ask if they had any questions when she stopped mid sentence.

Edward watched as she moved the stethoscope around and around before taking if off and setting it on the table. "I think we're going to go ahead with the ultrasound today. No need to worry. I just want to check a few things out."

His heart stopped, there was something this woman wasn't telling them. As soon as she left the room, Bella turned to him. "Edward, something's wrong, isn't it? This is just supposed to be a normal appointment. Why does she need an ultrasound?"

Lying to her for the first time since he could remember, he said quietly, "Try to relax. I'm sure everything's fine."

The doctor came back in, this time pushing a big cart with a monitor on it. He held the door for her so she could get in. Bringing the cart around, she smiled and opened the front of the gown Bella wore. "This is going to be cold." Edward held Bella's hand as the woman squirted some slimy looking stuff onto her stomach and turned the monitor on. As soon as the wand touched her stomach, Edward heard thumping noises. There was no picture yet, just black with little things floating around here and there. He could make out Bella's heartbeat and noticed that the wand was close to the top of her stomach...nowhere near the little bump. What confused him was the other sounds. It wasn't a pattern...more like a bunch of beats but not the normal 'thump-thump' that he was used to hearing. Edward Jr.'s heartbeat had sound like a fainter, faster version of his mother's.

"W...why does it sound like that? What's wrong with the baby?"

The doctor was working her way down to the bump now and she angled the monitor so that he was unable to see it. He swore she did it on purpose. He broke out in a cold sweat. Her eyes got big as she began clicking the keyboard attached to the monitor and moving the wand a tiny bit each time. "Edward, everything looks great. There is something you should know, though. Your wife is carrying twins."

She pushed the cart toward them and on the monitor, sure enough, she pointed out two little figures. "There they are. They both seem to be developing normally. This one is a little smaller than the other but that's not uncommon...I'm going to judge from the looks on both of your faces you weren't expecting this news."

Edward really wasn't hearing anything she said. After she told him everything looked okay and that his wife was not only pregnant with a baby, but now they were having two, he completely shut down. _How the hell can we possibly raise two babies? I couldn't even handle Livy last night. _He realized Bella was clenching his hand now and nodding her head at something the woman was saying. Letting her keep squeezing, he stood in shock and pretended to be paying attention to them.

They were out of downtown Seattle by the time either of them said anything. Bella broke the silence first. "Are you going to be okay? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine," Edward responded and retreated back to his thoughts.

"Please talk to me. I know you're in shock." When he still didn't say anything else, she grabbed his hand on the shifter, "Edward, you need to relax. You're okay."

"We're having two babies. There's more than one. There's two," he said it monotone, as if confirming these facts with her.

"Yes. Two. Ready or not, they're coming."

"I'm not ready..." he said in a defeated tone.

"Pull over. You shouldn't be driving like this." Surprisingly, he did as she asked and turned to look at her. "Edward Anthony Cullen, you are ready for this. God wouldn't have given us this gift if we weren't ready."

"What if I mess up? What if I don't know how to take care of them? What if..."

"Of course we're _both_ going to mess up. We aren't going to do everything I learned about in my early childhood classes. We are probably going to let them eat too much junk food once in awhile...or watch too much TV. They don't need us to be perfect. They need us to love them, everyday, even now. Please don't shut down on me. I'm really, really going to need you. We all are. This family needs you."

"I know. I guess I'm just scared. Like really, really out of my fucking mind fucking terrified!"

"First, quit pulling at your hair. Second, watch the language. Third, I'm scared too. Do you think I was expecting to be told we would be responsible for two little babies at the same time. I'm just as terrified but I know they need me as much as we need you. We're all these two little ones have."

Edward opened his door and came around to Bella's side. Opening hers, he knelt down and put his hand on her stomach. "We're having twins. We're going to do this together. We're going to be okay," he said like a mantra.

"Yes, we are," smiled Bella, seeing how adorable he is when he gets flustered. She could tell he was still nervous but was trying his best to be strong. She realized they both were. Over the past few months, she's come to realize that she needed to pull herself together so that she could take care of the two little lives growing inside of her. She had handled the Kiera situation well, come to terms with the house, forgiven Edward for his past mistakes, and was finally dealing with Mike in a healthy way—by focusing on his getting put behind bars instead of him coming back to finish what he'd started.

The past few months had been full of questioning and case building. Edward told her Collin had kept him involved in everything and the case was pretty staggering against Mike. Edward had also been cleared, thanks to Tanya, who had absolutely no problem admitting to the general public that Edward had been with her that night...all night. Security cameras caught them making out as they headed into Tanya's and didn't catch him until the next morning, when he was practically dragging Tanya to her car. Bella definitely didn't like the fact that they showed the beginning of it to her, but it's not like she didn't know it happened.

The other Denali sister and Kate both witnessed, along with Tanya, Bella out with Mike that night, and were going to testify if needed. Esme was going to talk about what she saw when she picked Bella up that night. Surprisingly, Kathy the counselor was going to explain Edward's involvement with her healing if things began to pick up with him again. Also, they were praying he wouldn't give a guilty plea because it would decrease the time he'd end up in jail. This is where neither her nor Edward were happy. As much as she worried for herself, she worried about what Edward's reaction might be. She'd seen her brother-in-laws and could only imagine her husbands.

After a few minutes, he got up and walked back towards the car. Getting back behind the wheel, he turned towards her again. "Ready?"

"Yes." She didn't know if he meant raising twins or the trip ahead of them or even breaking the news to Charlie but she was ready for whatever happened. She could face anything as long as he was beside her. Resting her head on the back of her seat, she took a deep breath and brought her hand to her stomach, where Edward's had been moments before.

**Do you love me a little more today? =] I think they finally might be getting themselves together! **

**Hopefully I can update tomorrow! Keep up all the reviews, they are serious motivation! Until next time, LP xoxo**


	30. Chapter 30

**Due to some technical difficulties with my internet, I was unable to upload this yesterday OR send it to my beta. Therefore, there may be a few mistakes but I have gone back and read this three times now looking for errors. Sorry it's late but here it is. The 30th chapter! I loved all the reviews I received, keep it up! Thank you so, so much! Shout out to Cait!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: "Yes." She didn't know if he meant raising twins or the trip ahead of them or even breaking the news to Charlie but she was ready for whatever happened. She could face anything as long as he was beside her. Resting her head on the back of her seat, she took a deep breath and brought her hand to her stomach, where Edward's had been moments before. **

**Chapter 30**

"Hey, dad!" Bella yelled to her father, who was standing on the porch waiting for them.

"Hey, Bells!" He smiled, walking towards the car and giving her a hug as soon as she stepped out. She tried to keep distance between them because of the babies and returned the hug rather awkwardly, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah...um...fine. Dad, why don't you help Edward with the bags? I need to use the bathroom."

"Okay. Oh, since you're only going to be here a couple days, I invited some people to go to dinner with us tonight. Billy and Sue have a small Christmas gift for you." He hugged her again, this time from the side, "I've missed ya, Bells."

"I missed you, too. Is Jake going to be at dinner?"

"Do you want him to be?" Charlie asked, glancing between her and Edward.

"Honestly, I don't know, dad."

"What do you think, Edward?" Charlie asked, turning toward her husband who looked like he was trying to figure out if Charlie was just being smart with him or if he really wanted his opinion. "Well?"

"I...I think it's up to her. I'm not going to stop her from talking to him. I don't necessarily want her alone with him while he's drinking, though." Edward answered honestly.

"Alright. Well, Bells, when you decide if and when you want to talk to him, let me know. Until then, it'll just be the five of us tonight."

"Alright, I'd love to keep chatting out here but it's like zero degrees and I have to pee. I'll see you in the house."

Edward reached in to pull out their bags when Charlie walked right up beside him and grabbed his arm, stopping him. Edward straightened and looked him straight in the eyes. Charlie took a deep breath and said, "I know she loves you. I know you have it all. Money, a good family, looks, but you also have my daughters heart. That better be the most fucking important thing in your life from here on out. Do you understand, Edward?"

"Yes," Edward said, clenching his jaw. He couldn't believe her father was saying this to him. Although, he had to respect the guy. If one of the twins were a girl and her husband had hurt her the way he'd hurt Bella, he'd be doing the same thing. Charlie was worried for Bella. There was no way Edward would get angry with him for that.

"Good. I'm trusting you with her. You've lost a lot of my respect and what little is still there wonders if you really care for her the way you let on. She's not as...privileged as you are. Please don't take advantage of that."

"Sir, I love your daughter more than anything. I would give every damn penny I have to keep her happy. I know I messed up over the past year and I am vowing to you, right now, that I will never put anything but her first again. For what it's worth to you, you have my word."

Charlie nodded before saying, "Alright. Just try to take things slow with her. Take your time. Enjoy each other, don't rush things."

Edward just gave him a fake smile and nodded. Charlie was going to have another heart attack when Bella broke_ this_ news. "We should get inside. Bella's waiting."

When all the luggage was in Bella's childhood bedroom, Edward came downstairs and saw her sitting on the couch across from her father. "I think we should invite Jake. We can sit down and talk afterward when we come back here."

"He's not who you remember, Bella. Billy and I have both tried everything we could think of. Why don't you let me sit with you. Edward's right, I don't want you alone with him right now."

"Dad, I really don't think you should be the one sitting down with us when we have our talk. Why don't I get Sam to meet us over here after? Emily can bring Lily over for me to see her, too."

"Yeah, I guess that would be okay."

Suddenly Bella jumped up and ran for the bathroom. Edward followed her back upstairs and grabbed her hair just as she threw up. "Not now," she groaned as soon as she was done retching.

"Bella, we have to tell him," Edward said with certainty.

"Just wait until later tonight. After I talk to Jake. Just give me a few more hours to figure out how to do this."

"It's your choice..."

"Bells? Are you okay?" Charlie asked, standing in the doorway and looking concerned.

"Yeah, I think I just got a little car sick. I'm fine. When do we leave for dinner?" She managed to say before throwing up again.

Dinner had gone smoothly up until Jake had arrived. He hadn't shown up until everyone was finished eating, still slightly sober. Bella's heart twisted as he sat down beside Sue, not even acknowledging his father, and ordered a drink. He looked terrible. He'd lost weight, no longer the muscular man she remembered him being. His hair was cut really short and his clothes had holes in them.

She looked down at her lap and began to play with her wedding rings, Edward seemed to sense she was upset and rubbed her leg. Awkward silence filled the table until Billy spoke up. "It's nice to see you again, Jacob."

"Yeah." Jake said, taking the brown drink for the waitress and drinking half of it in one gulp.

"We're all finished eating but if you want to..." Sue began.

"I'm not hungry," Jake answered, interrupting her.

"Well, then," spoke Charlie, "why don't we head back to my place?"

Bella watched as Jake finished his drink and stood up. He left without saying anything. Unable to hide her tears, Bella stood up as well and pulled her coat on. She felt anxious, like she couldn't sit still and wanted to get out of the restaurant before she did something dangerous—like following Jake.

Sue put an arm around her as the guys put their own coats on. "He's changed, Bella."

"Charlie," she heard Edward say, "I don't want him around her. You can feel the anger coming off of him. Please, I read people for a living and he's not stable."

"I know. He isn't usually this bad. We won't worry about it right now. He obviously doesn't want to talk to her."

"Dad...I have to," Bella said, butting in on the conversation.

"No. You don't," Edward said, shaking his head.

"I don't have a choice. He's going to get himself killed, Edward. Please, just let me try..."

"No. Think about..." he stopped himself from saying the babies. Bella knew those would have been the next words out of his mouth. "Just...no."

"You, dad, Sam, Billy, all of you can be there. Besides, how do we know he won't show up? I have to talk to him eventually."

She watched as her husband and father exchanged looks, as if having a silent discussion before they both nodded and looked at her. "Fine," Edward relented, "if he shows."

The ride back to Charlie's had been an interesting one, Edward was texting her as they sat side by side in the backseat of the cruiser. 'This isn't just about you.'

'You will all be there. I'll be fine.'

Sure enough, when they pulled up to Charlie's, Sue and Billy right behind them, Sam and Emily's vehicle was there...as well as Jake's. Edward tensed up beside her and shook his head. Taking a deep breath, she got out and walked towards the house, her father and Edward right behind her. Emily and Sam got out as Sue pulled the little pink baby carrier out of the back of their car. Jake followed behind as everyone said their hellos and headed inside. While Jake stayed pretty silent, everyone else was talking and joking. They passed around baby Lily while Edward and Emily talked about how Alice was doing with her own little girl.

Everyone was pretty relaxed and Bella decided to take the opportunity to talk to the childhood friend she could barely recognize. "Hey, Jake," she said, quietly, going to stand beside him in front of the kitchen door. He gave a small smile and then grimaced, as if realizing he looked less menacing for ten little seconds. "What do you say we go somewhere and talk? No one's in the kitchen."

"Whatever."

"I'll meet you in there. Just give me a minute."

When he was through the door she went over to Edward and whispered, "Trust me. I'm taking Sam." He went to say something but she ignored him and motioned to Sam for him to follow her. He complied with a questioning look.

"Protection detail?" Jake asked, rolling his eyes when the two of them walked in.

Bella knew if she was going to get through, she had to be honest—it's not like she could lie anyway. "Yeah," she stated matter-of-factly, crossing her arms. "Jake, what's going on with you? Have you seen yourself lately?"

"I see what this is. The let's-have-a-heart-to-heart intervention strategy. Who put you up to this? Charlie?"

"Jake..."

"I mean, I know you wouldn't give a shit on your own."

Bella felt herself tear up, he'd never spoken to her this way before. "I just want to help..."

"Help?" snorted Jake, sliding his chair back and standing up. Bella saw Sam step forward out of the corner of her eye.

"Yes. I want to help you. You're sick, Jake, you need help..."

"Bullshit! I don't need fucking help! For once in my sad life I feel completely fucking numb!" Bella took a step back, she hadn't expected to see him become this angry. She didn't know what to say. "You know, Bella, when your rich husband showed up I knew it was only a matter of time before I lost you. He could give you money, and a big house, and a new car, and a rich fucking family...what the fuck did I ever have to offer? I was just some poor kid living on a crumbling reservation who'd lost his mom. I never could have been enough for you...I couldn't even be enough for Leah...who grew up almost the same as me."

"Jake, you aren't..."

She jumped as he slammed his fist behind him, hitting the cupboard door, causing it to break, "Don't tell me what I am and what I'm not. Don't fucking try!"

The kitchen door opened as Edward and her father stepped through. Jake pushed past Sam, making his way towards the door which was now flanked by the two panicked guys. To everyone's surprise, when the two stepped aside to let him leave, he doubled back and grabbed Bella by the shoulders, pressing her back until she was against the refrigerator.

"Jake!" Unable to think, Bella blurted out the only thought running through her head. "I'm pregnant!" Then, she brought her leg up and kneed him in the balls. Edward was there seconds after, wrapping his arms around her as she began to cry. The two of them slid down to sit on the floor as Charlie was cuffing Jake.

"This isn't him, Edward. This isn't him..."

"I know. You're okay, now."

Sam was helping Charlie get Jake out of the house as Emily came in to check on things. Bella told her and Sue what happened while Charlie left with Sam to take Jacob downtown to the station. Billy just kept apologizing, over and over again. Finally, Bella stood up and walked over to him. Bending down to give him a hug, she whispered, "This wasn't your fault. He's not our Jake anymore, Billy. He's changed."

Eventually, everyone left but not before giving Bella her Christmas present. It turned out Sue and Billy had worked on it together and it brought tears to her eyes now as she sat at the table and flipped through it. They'd given her a photo album. On the front cover was a picture of her with all the La Push kids at the beach. She was standing on the dock, right between Jake and Emily. They had all been there, Sam, Paul, Seth, Leah, Embry, even Quil. The rest of the album showed her whole childhood, captured in pictures. Edward listened as she explained picture after picture to him.

The two of them were just about to go to bed, when Charlie arrived home. "Bella? Are you okay, sweet heart?"

"Yeah, he just scared me a little, that's all."

Charlie nodded and looked down at the album. "What do you think? I told them you were going to love it."

"I do love it, dad. It's great."

"So, is it true?"

"What?" Bella asked, still flipping through the last of the pictures.

"Are you having another baby?"

"Oh. Yeah...I mean no...well...no I mean yes..."

"Yes, sir. We are. We're actually having two. She's pregnant with twins."

"Bella," Charlie groaned, as if disappointed.

"Dad, don't give me that crap. I want this. We both do. I've spent this whole year sulking and not living because I lost my son. Now I've been given this amazing gift. I'm really, really happy for the first time in a long time."

"What about you?" he asked, turning to Edward.

"There are no words for how happy I am, sir."

Charlie nodded his head a few times, as if slowly digesting the news. Finally, he cleared his throat, "Well, this old man has had enough excitement to last the next eighteen years so tell them to behave themselves. Oh, and Bells," he asked, heading for the door.

"Yeah, dad?"

"I want my grandkids to have memories like that," he said, pointing to the photo album.

Bella felt tears in her eyes, "I want that too. Forks will always be home to me. There's no way in hell my kids aren't going to love this place just as much as I do...or else I'm telling them at they're grounded." Bella laughed, only half-joking.

"He took that better than I'd expected," Edward said later that night as they laid in bed.

"I'm assuming you're talking about dad and not Jake?" Bella asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Very funny. I'm sorry you had to see Jacob like that, Bells. As much as I don't want Tanya in my life anymore, I couldn't imagine having to sit back and watch her self-destruct. It was even hard for me to see Jacob like that."

"Well, at least I know I tried. This is out of my power now. You were right, it's not just about me anymore." Just as her eyelids were growing heavy, she said, "We should stop over at Billy's tomorrow before heading home. Sue's too. I want to let them know how much I loved my present."

Alice, Jasper, Esme, and Carlisle sat around the dining room table, looking at Rose's wedding pictures for the hundredth time. Esme was holding her granddaughter and Carlisle was trying to choose which picture to order to have at the hospital. Finally, unable to control her anxiety anymore, Alice blurted, "I'm worried about Edward and Bella."

Everyone's eyes jumped to her immediately. "What do you mean?" Esme asked.

Alice launched into the story, "Well, they watched Livy for Jazz and I on Thursday and when we stopped to pick her back up, you could just tell there was something wrong. Then, I had lunch the next day with Rose and she told me that Edward was leaving work early and asked if I knew why. She said he seemed kind of nervous lately and she was worried about him. Then, I was worried, so I called his office and that pretty receptionist told me he'd left to go to Forks. Also, last night, Jasper got a text from Edward asking if we'd definitely be here on Sunday because he had something he wanted to tell us..."

"Alice, first of all, you missed your calling—you should have been a detective. Second, you can't just butt into your brother's business like this. Third, all of these things don't necessarily mean it's something bad..." Carlisle tried to reason with her.

"I saw divorce papers on their kitchen counter when I went in to get a glass of water. I think they're considering it again."

"Divorce papers? Really?" Esme asked, worry started to spread across her face as well.

"I think you're both over reacting." Carlisle put in, reaching over and taking the baby from Esme. "Let's not jump to conclusions. He said he had something he wanted to tell us tomorrow so we'll wait until tomorrow and see what it is. No big deal. It's not like we can really stop them, anyway."

"I'd hate seein' that as the problem," Jasper spoke up, "he loves Bells. I doubt he'd be willin' to hurt her again."

"Let's just keep this between us for now. Like I said, we'll all know tomorrow."

"Okay...and Emmett and Rose know too, though," Alice added shyly, "I called Rose after I talked to Natalia."

Jasper shook his head before saying, "Wife, is it impossible for ya tah mind your own business?"

"I'm just worried about my brother! I'm going to talk to him. Before he can break the news to us, I'm going to talk to them both. I love Bella. I don't want to see her walk away from our family."

Edward and Bella spent Saturday with Charlie before stopping to visit Billy and Sue and then headed home. She's felt nauseous the whole ride and he had to pull over twice. It was now Sunday and they were headed to his parents, she told him she felt no better than the night before. She'd politely said hi to Carlisle and Esme before he watched her head to the upstairs bathroom. Edward knocked on the door a few minutes later and said that dinner was ready if she wanted anything and that Alice and Jasper were running a little late.

He was worried about her but knew she went through the same issue with her first pregnancy. He'd told his parents she wasn't feeling well and wanted to lie down. Now, they were all sitting down to dinner when Jasper and Alice finally showed up. To his surprise, Alice flew into the dining room and stopped when she saw the empty chair behind him. "No! I object!"

Confused, he looked at her like she was nuts and Jasper walked in with the baby. "Ally, you can't _object_ to something like that..." her husband said in a tired voice.

"Something like what?" Edward asked, looking at Jasper now, figuring he'd have more of a chance getting something that made sense from his best friend then his sister. Everyone else had grown quiet. Bella must have heard because she entered through the other entrance of the kitchen. He watched as Alice's face twisted with confusion this time.

Bella still looked white as a sheet but she also looked just as confused. "Ally, what's wrong? What's going on?"

"You're getting a divorce! I want to object!"

"Who's getting a divorce?" Bella asked, then it hit him.

"Alice, we're not getting a divorce. We're not even fighting right now."

"Then...what...why...I thought you had something to tell us..."

"We do have something to tell you," he said, rolling his eyes. Sitting down and pulling out the chair beside him for Bella, he cleared his throat. "Bella and I...we're pregnant again..."

"OH!" Esme said, jumping up and hugging them both. "How far along? Do you know what it is?"

"No, we don't know what_ they_ are. Mom, we're having twins."

"Oh my God!" Alice gasped, joining in the hugs.

Rose smiled at Emmett and Jasper came over to pat Edward on the back. Carlisle got up and found a bottle of wine—and sparkling cider—for them to drink. Bella fought back tears as his family welcomed the news of their unborn babies with open arms. As Alice apologized, Edward just shook his head. "You know, you could have just asked me what was going on."

"I'm sorry, I though you were getting a divorce..."

"It's alright, Al, and trust me when I say, you really don't have to worry about that anytime soon."

"So, are we all going to the big banquet in a few weeks?" Rose asked, hinting that she really wanted to go.

"I don't know, Rose. I hate being photographed all night at those damn things. We're already having enough issues with reporters. I'm just glad things have died down a little."

"Yeah but it's going to start up again soon. O'Brien told me Friday that Mike is definitely leaning towards pleading guilty. I just don't understand, we have so much on him. If the plea wasn't an option for him we'd have him in jail for close to, if not _for_, life. He has every charge from aggravated sexual assault to attempted murder to harassment. We're throwing the whole damn book at him, Edward. If he pleads guilty, which he knows he'll never win otherwise, he could be out in twenty years. That's assuming he'll never get out on parole."

"Dammit," Edward muttered, "I don't understand how this whole damn plea came about! The lawyers are usually the ones who set the precedents themselves!"

"There's nothing you could have done. When dad found out who was representing Newton he told him how hard it would be for her to testify what happened in court. The only thing they could come up with was to offer the deal. We don't have enough to put him away for life. We knew that. Either Bells testifies or he gets out early. That's all we got. Take it or leave it."

"Your dad? He's the one who started all this?"

"No!_ He_ didn't start anything. He's trying to make the right decision, as is Collin. You_ know _they both have your best interests at heart but they have to do what they feel is right for the client. You can't _make_ someone testify. It's unethical!"

"Okay..." Esme tried to cut in.

"Even if that someone was the one fearing for her life? What about a warrant?"

"Oh, my God! Edward, do you hear yourself? You're going to warrant your wife to testify in front of a bunch of people she doesn't know about her rape! Really?"

His family was watching their exchange go back and forth like a tennis match. Newton needed to be behind bars for good. Bella needed to at least have that piece of mind. "I wouldn't need one! She'd do it!"

To his surprise, Bella broke her silence and stood up quickly, "_She_ is standing right here! Do you want to know how this plea bargain was arranged? It was because of me! I went to Trenton and begged him to not make me testify!"

If this were a cartoon, his jaw would have fallen to the ground. Mike Newton was going to walk in less than twenty years because of Bella herself. He'd been fighting for her for these past months and she'd gone behind his back to do exactly what he'd been advising everyone against since the beginning. There were no words for what he felt in that moment.

"I talked to Collin already. I'm not doing it. Kathy agrees. She knew about the pregnancy long before anyone because I wanted to make sure my meds were safe for the baby. She said the stress wouldn't be good for me or the pregnancy. I absolutely refuse to lose another child."

"What happens when he walks, Bella? What then? You're telling me that our kids will be safer if you _don't_ put him away for as long as possible?"

"This is why I didn't talk to you about this! I just told Collin."

"Yeah, well, he's going to get a good earful from me at work tomorrow!"

"No! I did this! Not him. He respects you and considers you a really great friend. You said it yourself that he's an amazing lawyer. Why can't you understand how hard that would be for me?"

"You don't trust that I'm trying to act in your best interest? Really, Bella? Really?"

"See, this is exactly why you couldn't have represented her, Edward! You're too involved with this case. It's personal. You aren't seeing things clearly," Rose cut into their back and forth match, "Take the personal issue out of this. You get a client. She's a victim of a heinous act of violence. She's already seeing a counselor. She begs you not to put her on the stand...even if it's the only thing that could get her offender behind bars. What do you do?"

"This is different..."

"You wouldn't make that person testify and you know it!" Rose exclaimed.

Finally, Esme stood up. "Alright, this is enough at the dinner table. You three can finish this discussion afterward. We have news to celebrate and food to eat. Enough work talk."

Edward sat back in his chair, not saying anything to anyone. Bella walked out of the room, saying she wanted to lie back down. Rose began to pick at her food. "So," Alice said, trying to brighten the mood again, "even though I don't get to go to the party, are you going? We can go shopping, Rose!" No longer able to stomach his food—or his sister, Edward slid his chair back and left the room as well.

**Next update will probably be in a couple days. I have some meetings and thing tomorrow evening. :)**


	31. Chapter 31

**I have nothing to really say this time except my reviewers are awesome! I love hearing from you and if you have anything to say just say it! I will respond back! Cait, you're awesome and I can't wait for cake tomorrow! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: Edward sat back in his chair, not saying anything to anyone. Bella walked out of the room, saying she wanted to lie back down. Rose began to pick at her food. "So," Alice said, trying to brighten the mood again, "even though I don't get to go to the party, are you going? We can go shopping, Rose!" No longer able to stomach his food—or his sister, Edward slid his chair back and left the room as well.**

**Chapter 31**

Edward walked in and sat at the foot of his childhood bed, his pregnant wife curled into a ball at the top. "Bella, we need to talk about this. I can't believe you didn't tell me you went to Trenton behind my back."

"I knew you would react this way and I really, really can't testify. My health aside, do you have any idea what could be said on this trial? I can't sit there and hear him or even see him. He hadn't bothered me again until that night you were in Chicago and he was surprised to see me. I'm not saying I know for sure he wouldn't do anything to hurt me but I think the way he acted with Em was more defense than offense. Please, just let it go."

"I just...I have been apart of this whole case from day one. When the plea bargain was brought up I'd assumed it was on Mike's lawyers end. I fought with one of my closest colleagues about this because I couldn't understand why he was agreeing to it!"

"Fine. I admit it. I never should have kept this from you! I was wrong. Edward, it's just that I don't need you to be my lawyer. I need you to be my husband. You know the hurtful things people and the media are going to be saying about me! That separation was never official! They're going to say that I'm a cheating wife who got what she had coming! I appreciate Mike's lawyer for helping us out with the plea, but it was benefiting his client—and I know that. He wants to win this case and he's going to drag my name through the wringer to do it! You've seen these things play out!"

"I have and I understand that but you can't let him walk this easily! Do you know what he's done to you?"

"Don't even ask me that. Don't. I'm just as terrified as you are about this! When he gets out, I know it's risky for me. I also am worried about what you'll do! I don't want my husband to be the one who ends up in jail for murder. Ever since I went to Trenton I've been worried about it but I seriously can't do this. A part of me does want this to go to trial but the other part wants to just stand back and pretend it didn't happen because I can't forget!"

"So you really are _worried_ that he could take the deal?"

"Yes. Of course I'm worried! Edward, I'm not changing my mind on this. I'm really tired and I haven't had a full stomach all weekend. I need to rest. The babies need me to rest. I'm begging you to not take this as me avoiding the issue. It's done and was already offered. I need some space. I love you. We can talk when you start to realize I don't need a lawyer. I need my husband. I'm just going to stay here and sleep today. Tell your mom I'm sorry I missed dinner. Give me a few hours. Go clear your head."

He watched her roll over so she was facing away from him. An obvious get-the-hell-out move. Sighing, he went back downstairs and grabbed his coat. "Where you going?" Emmett asked his little brother.

"Out. Mom, Bella said she's sorry for missing dinner. She needs to sleep for awhile. I'll be back later to get her. If she needs me for anything, I mean anything, call me."

Before anyone could stop him, he made sure he had his phone and left. When he got to the car, he dialed the only person who could put him at ease and headed towards Hale Law. Collin O'Brien was waiting in his office. "I can't believe you two pulled this. How could you not tell me? After all the disagreements we've had over offering it to him, how could you not have told me what my wife actually wanted?"

"Edward, we didn't do this to upset you. She didn't want me to tell you and she's still my client. I went to Trenton when she came to me. He agreed that it should be arranged without you knowing. He's my boss. What did you want me to do?"

"Trenton, she's pregnant," Edward practically whispered, as if that explained his frustration.

"I know. This is exactly why she doesn't want to go to trial Edward. Please try to understand neither of us did this to upset you. It is in my professional opinion that she will not be able to adequately testify at this trial. There's no way in hell."

"I just don't understand how you kept this from me..."

"You never looked in her file. You avoid it like the plague. You just keep asking me if we have a good enough case built. We do but it's not foolproof. You know as well as I do that nothing ever is. We get a bad judge, we get a bad jury. You're so concerned about him walking after twenty years yet you aren't thinking he could end up walking out of the court house a free man from the beginning—after her smears your family and rebreaks Bella emotionally."

"She just has to tell her story, Collin."

"Has she told you the whole story yet, Edward? I don't doubt that what she claims happened actually did happen. The jury might not if she can't tell it to them. So has she?"

"No," Edward said, realizing she never had told him exactly what all went down that night. He wondered if he could bear to hear it.

"I didn't think so. She hasn't done it for me once yet. We can get through how the night started but as soon as she begins to talk about the house, she breaks. The parts she does tell me are so rehearsed it makes me wonder if she'd reading off of fucking note cards. What isn't rehearsed, she can't even talk about and when she tries, it comes out with missing parts. I'm trying to get a recorded statement from her and I can't even do that. This is just me asking her to tell me what happened without any cues. What's going to happen when she's cross-examined? Edward, she's going to break down or she's going to say what she always does when she panics, 'I don't remember'. You know damn well what a jury is going to say to that."

"You still haven't gotten a recorded statement from her?"

"No. I keep hoping that she will every time she comes in and she breaks before we get to any of that night that could put Mike away. All I have is some small details about who they were with and what bar they went to. That's it. She. Can't. Do. This. That plea bargain is the only thing that's going to save her. Do you really want your pregnant wife paraded around for the public to criticize?"

"Of course not!"

"Well, that's another issue we really need to talk to her about. They are going to try to demoralize her. I need to get her to answer honestly, because the truth is nothing she needs to hide, and she also has to take what they are saying with a grain of salt. We can't let her get offended."

"Well then, we interrogate her ourselves. Put her on the spot before the trial. Dammit, Collin, I absolutely fucking refuse to throw her to them unaware. I want her to be able to sit with a straight, calm face and not absorb any of the shit they are going to throw at her."

"Who's going to be the bad guy?" Collin asked, meaning who was going to be the one trying to break her down.

"You do it. I won't be able to. I'll just sit back and try to keep quiet like what would be happening in court. I'll still be there, though."

"It's going to be worse by the time the trial starts, Edward. She's going to be even farther along in the pregnancy. People are going to know she's pregnant, she won't be able to hide it."

"Is it public?"

"Yes."

"Fuck!"

"Do we know what judge we have?"

"Not yet. I should know all the details sometime before this Wednesday. Tomorrow's the deadline for Newton to make up his damn mind."

"What's stopping him?"

"The bastard thinks he has a chance of being found innocent."

"He does have a chance," Edward murmured.

"We're all the smarter for believing it, man. This isn't a done deal. All I have to say is, if this ends up in court, Bella needs to be ready."

"I know. Thanks for coming in on a Sunday. Before you leave, though, I want every damn file you have on Bella and Mike."

"I'll be right back and I'm not going anywhere. We do this together, just like any other case." Before he left he turned towards Edward again, "Oh, and just so you know, that corporate big-shot that requested us in Chicago? He's not even getting a tenth of the work I'm putting into Bella's case. Mike Newton deserves to rot for the rest of his life and I'm making it my soul purpose in life to convince the jury of that."

"Esme, did he say when he was coming back?" Bella asked, sitting cross-legged on the couch at her in-laws.

"He just said he'd be back in a little while to get you. Do you want me to call him?"

"He left five hours ago. I'm just worried something happened..." She wanted to kick herself for the image of him and Kiera popping into her head. Maybe he just really needed some space from her, too. When she'd gotten up about an hour ago, she thought about why Edward was upset. He was right. She shouldn't have kept this from him but he was reacting in the exact way she'd wanted to avoid.

"It's up to you on whether or not to call. Can I get you anything while we wait? Maybe some hot tea?"

"No. I'm fine. I'm just going to call...I mean...it's not like I'm nagging him or something. I'm worried." She picked up her phone and decided against it. Instead, she asked Esme to take her back to the apartment.

When they were almost there, she happened to look over at the Hale Law parking lot and noticed about five different vehicles there. "Esme, is that Rose's car by Edward's?"

Her mother-in-law slowed down at the stop light and looked over. "I think so. What are they doing there on a Sunday?"

"I have no idea."

"Want to find out?"

"Sure," Bella sighed. After they were parked, Bella got out and Esme told her to call if she needed anything. The first person Bella saw was Natalia, who was being followed around by her little boy as she made copies.

"Bella!" she exclaimed, about jumping out of her skin when she turned to see Bella staring at her.

"Where is he? He's not in his office," Bella asked, a little irked that he was here with her on a Sunday.

"They're all down in Collin's."

"Oh," she said, surprised before muttering a thanks to her.

When she found the familiar office, she pushed the door open and was surprised by what she saw. Rosalie was in sweatpants and a hoodie, sitting at Collin's desk and typing furiously away at his computer. Edward was sitting in the corner of the room on the floor, papers spread all around him. Collin and Trenton we both sitting in the seats on the other side of the desk. It looked as if Collin was giving him a play by play narration of a hockey game. Then there was someone Bella didn't recognize who was talking on a cell phone in another corner. It was so strange seeing all of the big lawyers in regular street clothes. She cleared her voice when she realized no one even knew she was there. Every head snapped towards her.

"Bella!" It was Edward's turn to say in surprise.

"Hey, you never came back and I was getting worried..."

"I'm sorry, we're working on the Newton case and I guess I lost track of time."

"It's okay. Hey, everyone," Bella said absently.

"Yeah, I called Collin after our conversation," Edward said, "getting up and walking towards her. So, we started to go back through everything and I'm glad we did because Officer Xander called us about an hour later..."

"What's going on?" Bella interrupted him, wanting to cut to the chase.

"Bella..." Edward said slowly, glancing over at Collin, who nodded his head in return.

Collin spoke next, "Bella, Mike didn't take the plea. This is it. We're officially going to trial."

Taking a step back, Bella tried to compose herself long enough to say something—but found it wasn't going to happen. Edward grabbed her hand and rubbed his finger on her palm, trying to calm her. Her hand went to her bump as tears sprang to her eyes. She absolutely couldn't do this. It would kill her.

"Alright, we can go home, come on, angel."

She didn't remember if she'd said goodbye, couldn't remember if anyone else walked out with them, she only remembered fighting tears the whole way to the car and finally breaking down once safely inside. Edward drove them home as Bella wrapped her arms around herself and cried the whole way. To her surprise, they didn't go back to the apartment, he took her back to the house. Carrying her up the steps, he ran a hot bath and sat on the floor while she soaked.

"You're going to be okay, Bella."

"I know," Bella said, still crying, "I'm just worried."

"I know you are but there's something that we need to talk about."

"Now what?"

"You have to tell me what happened that night. From the beginning to the end."

"I can't," Bella blurted, without hesitation.

"You're going to have to, angel. I need you to. Collin needs you to."

"Not now, okay. Just give me a little bit to calm down. Why don't you come join me?" Bella asked with a small smile.

He kissed her cheek before getting up and taking off his shirt. Bella surprised herself by immediately getting turned on, then she remembered the pregnancy. She'd been, in Edward's words, 'totally insatiable' the last time. He looked so good while he unbuttoned his pants and slid them down...

"Are you enjoying this?" Edward asked with his devilish grin that always made her girly parts want to explode.

"What if I said yes?"

"Then I'd say to enjoy it. You're usually the one undressing in front of me."

He went to step into the tub and she slid forward for him to sit behind her. Catching him off-guard, she spun around so that she was face to face with him, her legs on either side of his. Without saying anything, their lips met and before they knew what was happening, their tongues had begun to explore. When his fingers found her sensitive nipples, she let her head fall back in a silent moan. "What's wrong, Bella?" he teased her. Before she could answer, he removed his fingers and replaced them with his mouth. This time, her moan wasn't so silent.

She leaned in closer to him and felt his hardness against her leg. Positioning herself so he was right over him, she went down and felt him slide in. He gasped, completely not expecting it, before sucking on her other nipple. In the back of her mind, she realized the water was still running but couldn't bring herself to reach behind them and turn it off.

She cried out again as his fingers found her folds and began to massage. Rocking herself against him, she ran her hands over his slick, wet skin while water splashed out and onto the floor. She came hard seconds later but Edward wasn't letting up on his own fun. She came three more times before he finally stopped moving beneath her. She collapsed against his chest, the two of them still locked together. "That was amazing, Bells."

"You have no idea, Cullen." He slid out of her and reached to turn off the water. "Looks like we have a bit of a mess to clean up."

"Yeah, looks like it. I'll get the bucket and mop...eventually," Bella replied, still out of breath.

An hour later, Bella and Edward sat on the floor of their living room in front of the tv. They were watching Rose Red, settled in for a long evening of Stephen King, and chowing down on Chinese take-out. "So, I was thinking, I really want the babies to have matching cribs and things. Do you think it's possible to order the same things still?"

"Probably, we can try to find everything online. I'm sure it won't be a problem."

"What do you think they are? Two girls? Two boys? One of each?"

"I have no idea. I just want them to arrive safely."

"Oh, I wanted to tell you, if one is a boy I already have a name picked out."

Raising an eyebrow, he laughed, "Here we go Miss. Wanting to Wait to Name Them."

"Oh, be nice, I think you'll really love it."

"Okay, so what is it?"

"William Anthony Cullen," Bella said matter of factly.

She watched as he husband stopped chewing and put his fork down, obviously, he hadn't expected that one. "William..."

"Yeah. After your grandfather. I know how much he meant to you and I thought it was a great name. We could call him Liam for short."

"I love it, Bella. Thank you."

"Aw, you're welcome. It's your baby too, Edward. I want you to be happy with the name."

"Well, now it doesn't feel right that we don't have another name picked out."

"Technically, we might not have either one picked. It could be a girl."

"Well what about Lila Marie for a girl, William Anthony for a boy."

"Okay, now we just need two more names."

"When we were talking about names for Edward Jr., there was one that kind of stuck with me and I really don't know why."

"What was it?" Bella asked, taking a bite of lo mein.

"Trevor."

"I like Trevor! What about a middle name?"

"We could use Anthony again."

"Okay. Now another girl name, I have one in mind."

"Shoot."

"Callista, Cali for short."

"Callista Marie Cullen. I love it," Edward smiled.

"Then it's set, William Anthony Cullen and Trevor Anthony Cullen, Lila Marie Cullen and Callista Marie Cullen. We can decide by their personalities at the hospital which one will get which name."

"Sounds like a plan," he said before kissing her and turning back to the tv.

Hours later, the movie was almost over and they decided to stay at the house. Bella was exhausted again and Edward didn't want her to go out in the cold anymore than was necessary. Edward was just beginning to drift off when he heard someone knocking on the door. Edward groaned and went to the bedroom door as Bella squinted up at him, obviously half asleep. "Stay here. I'll see who it is."

Without turning any lights on, he pulled the door open and shock ran through him. Jacob Black stood in front of him, clad in nothing but a black t-shirt and a ripped pair of jeans. All he asked was, "Where is she?"

"You're not welcome here, Jacob. Leave."

"No. Not until I see Bella."

"Jacob, she doesn't want to see you. Do you have any idea how much you upset her?"

"I want to hear that from her. She's so damn gullible, she'll believe anything you say. I'm not her."

"Just leave. She's asleep," Edward wasn't letting him anywhere near her.

"Because of the baby, huh? It makes her tired," Jacob nodded his head as if he just found the cure for cancer. Edward squinted at him, confused and thinking it was a strange thing to say.

"Well, yeah...we're having twins." Then before he could stop himself, asked, "Jacob, are you on something besides alcohol? It's like four degrees outside and you have no coat."

By Jacob not responding, Edward had his answer. "Jacob, just come in for a minute. Jesus, man, you're gonna fucking freeze to death."

He moved aside and grabbed an old jacket from the closet. "Here, put this on."

Jacob looked at him hesitantly, as if it would explode if he took it. Slowly, he reached out and put it on. "Thanks, man."

What surprised Edward more than the late night visit was what happened next. Tears began to run down Jacob's cheeks. "I really fucked up, Edward. She hates me now. I almost hurt her and I didn't want to and now she'll never speak to me again and I hate you so much because you took her and now she's pregnant...and now there's _two_ of them!"

Edward just stood there as the Native American boy broke down in his foyer at twelve o'clock in the morning. He wanted the guy to leave but didn't have the heart to make him. Seeing a grown man cry was never easy. "Jacob, do you want something to drink...that doesn't contain alcohol?" Edward quickly added.

They moved to the kitchen and Edward made hot tea. They said nothing until a teacup was in front of each of them. Edward spoke first. "I can't let you hurt her, Jacob. I know you two were close before. I know that you think I stole her from you. I also know that she misses you. As annoying as that is, she does and I'm not so stupid that I don't see it."

"She really misses me?" Jacob asked, staring into his cup.

"Yes, but she's also pregnant with my babies. I will not let harm come to any of them. You have to understand that."

"I don't want to hurt her. I'm sorry for what happened a couple nights ago. I was drunk and I made a mistake. A big one. I came to apologize to her. I know she said months ago that we couldn't talk anymore but I wanted to at least apologize. I owe her that. I love her, Edward. I know you've always known that. I just can't let her think that I did this to her on purpose. It's the fucking alcohol. I never would have hurt her..."

Edward knew he was calm enough to not hurt her. Tonight. All bets were off for any other time. Jacob could become just as dangerous for Bella as Mike. That's all she needed. It was also no secret that she blamed herself for Jacob's downfall. Edward decided to make an offer he'd never thought he would, let alone have the chance, to extend to his sworn enemy. "I'll make a deal with you, Jacob. I will let you see her, talk to her, even see the kids once they're born under one condition and it's a big one. If you commit to this, I promise to keep my end of the deal."

**Oh, dear, the boys actually seem to be behaving, baby names are picked, and we're going to court. Hot damn :) Next update should be tomorrow. Today's my birthday and we're celebrating tomorrow so a HUGE birthday present would be a review from everyone who reads this! LP xo**


	32. Chapter 32

**I love all of the birthday wishes! So, I'll keep this short and let you read. Cait, you rock!**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: Edward knew he was calm enough to not hurt her. Tonight. All bets were off for any other time. Jacob could become just as dangerous for Bella as Mike. That's all she needed. It was also no secret that she blamed herself for Jacob's downfall. Edward decided to make an offer he'd never thought he would, let alone have the chance, to extend to his sworn enemy. "I'll make a deal with you, Jacob. I will let you see her, talk to her, even see the kids once they're born under one condition and it's a big one. If you commit to this, I promise to keep my end of the deal."**

**Chapter 32**

"I'll do anything. She's my best friend, even now. I really miss her."

"I know, Jake. I also know how it feels to say goodbye to a good friend and I don't want Bella to have to deal with it anymore. Are you ready to hear my conditions?"

"Yes. Anything."

"The most important thing. You go to rehab. I'm not talking some in and out, no alcohol for twenty-four hours bullshit. I'm talking you go away, stay there for a couple months, get your shit together and promise not to drink anymore."

Jacob didn't shut the idea down immediately and Edward saw there was still hope for him. "Then I get to see Bella? I can meet the kids, too?"

"There are conditions. The first being that if you ever do anything to hint at hurting Bella again, I will make sure you are in jail for a long, long time. Second, I don't care if you and Bella are alone in public but when you're around my kids, I'm there too. Understand?"

"Yeah."

"So what do you say, Jake? Will you let me get you the help you need?"

"You promise I'll get to see Bella? You swear it?"

"I don't make promises I don't intend to keep. You really have nothing to lose. Either way, you'll be able to get your life back together. I don't want to see what happened to Quil happen to you. Even though you do irritate the hell out of me," Edward said with a grin.

"Look," Jacob said, going back to starting at his tea, "I want to see her...I just..."

"Jake, you can't live the rest of your life this way! I mean, it's not like you couldn't find someone to settle down with. I'm sorry but there's no way in hell I'm giving up Bells," Edward said, trying to joke around with him.

"I don't have money..."

"Jake, I hate to break this to you, but money is _not_ the reason Bella married me. In fact, I think she gets a little irritated when I _do_ spend money on her. You can find someone who..."

"No, you don't get it. This is what I mean about you, Edward! I don't have money to afford going into a rehab clinic that is actually a quality place and worth my time. You didn't grow up the way Bella and I did."

"I can pay for it. You won't owe me anything in return."

"I don't want your money!"

"But you want to see me wife? Seems like we're both in a predicament then," Edward asked, knowing he had him. Edward one, Jacob zero.

Jacob glared at him, "How do I know she'll even talk to me after I go through all of this?"

"I'll talk to her. According to you she's so damn gullible, she'll listen to whatever I say," Edward answered dryly, knowing it was nowhere near the truth. "Besides, even if she doesn't you'll be better for it and you know that. So, what do you say? I'll make some calls, find somewhere good, pay your way, and you'll go? All I'm asking is you show up and do your best to get your shit together. Jake, I swear to God, if you can't do this you won't be seeing her. I promised her that from here on out I will do what I think is in her best interest. Right now, her seeing you is definitely not falling into that category."

"Why are you helping me like this?" Jacob asked, looking him in the eyes.

"I know that Bella would want this. You getting help is in her best interest, too. You're dangerous when you're drinking and you know it."

"Are you doing this so you can talk Bella into letting you see Tanya again?" Jacob asked, deadpan.

Edward looked up at him, jaw open, "Excuse me?"

"Tanya, you're ex-girlfriend slash ex-best friend. Is that why you're helping me?" Jacob sat up straight, knowing that there was probably some truth to it.

"Tanya has nothing to do with you. I want Bella safe and you're not safe right now."

"Alright, alright. I'll do it. I'll get help," Edward was just about to congratulate him when Jacob kept going, "Bella was there when my mom died. We found out after a day in second grade. We came home and were in my living room eating pop-tarts when Charlie came in, followed by Renee. They were still together then. My dad turned towards them and I remember him and Charlie just looking at each other before going into the kitchen. Renee came over and we climbed onto the couch beside her.

"I remember hearing my dad's muffled cries from the kitchen. I'll never forget it. Bella seemed to sense something wasn't right and she cried, too. That's when dad came in and told me my mom had been in a car accident. She was dead."

"I'm sorry, Jake. I can't imagine how hard that must have been..."

"Bella just stopped crying, got up off the couch, and hugged me. From that day on, even after she moved away with Renee, she was my best friend."

"I kind of know how you feel. I had someone like that, too. I just didn't love that person like I love Bella. Jake, I'm sorry that you hate me for taking her away from you but I do love her."

"I know you do. If I didn't think you did, I would have kicked your ass a long time ago. Just like in kindergarten, I got suspended for beating up Sam."

"You got suspended from kindergarten?" Edward asked like it was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard of.

"Yeah...he tried to steal Bella's pretzels at snack time."

Edward had to laugh at that one. He didn't know why but he added, "I got suspended for drugs the school year before I met Bella."

"No way! You, Mr. Perfect, got in trouble for drugs?"

"Yup," said Edward, popping the 'p'. After a laugh, both boys got quiet. "Look, it's getting late, I have work, and really need to go check on Bella. I'll make some calls tomorrow."

"What about Bella?"

"What about her?"

"Are you going to tell her about me?"

"Do you want me to?"

"No." Edward gave him a questioning looked, so he continued, "I don't want her to be disappointed if I quit."

"Fine with me. Just try not to mess this up, alright?"

The next day, Edward sat in his office and went over his schedule with Natalia. "How was Forks?"

"Interesting. Very, very interesting. Oh, I'm sorry, it slipped my mind yesterday but um...you know how I left early for Bella's appointment Friday?"

"Yeah."

"She's pregnant with twins!"

"No way! Congratulations! You'll have to bring them around for a play date."

"Definitely."

"Edward, can I say something, kind of not professional?"

"Um...sure," Edward said, looking up from his paperwork.

"Bella...she doesn't like me. I get it. I get why. I just feel like she really resents me being here."

"Nat, it's not you. I've made a lot of mistakes. I haven't really given her much of a reason to trust me."

"Can I ask you something else? Please don't take this as me trying something with you but I have to ask...I know you slept with other people when you were going through your divorce—anything you tell Emmett is going to get to Rose and then she usually tells me. Why wouldn't you accept my advances?"

"Oh...well, once again...it wasn't you," Edward was taken aback by her question but she seemed really curious, like she was doubting something. "You're definitely one of the best secretaries I've had and that's why I put a stop to anything happening between us before anything even began. I didn't want to lose you as a co-worker."

"I see," Natalia said, seemingly lost in thought.

"What's going on? Why are you asking me this?"

"It's stupid..."

"Natalia, I'm a lawyer. I deal with stupid people all day, everyday. Try me."

"Alright, promise not to laugh...I was out this weekend and this guy came up to me. We were having a great time until he asked me to go back to his apartment. I said no. He then proceeded to tell me that he'd just wasted an hour of his life on me. That it wasn't like he could take me home to his family. I was just a whore."

Edward didn't know what to say. Natalia was many things. Hard working, totally beautiful, kind, the best mom he'd ever known—aside from his own of course, and she seemed to be the total package. One thing she definitely was not was a whore. A part of him wanted to track the guy down and kick his ass. "Natalia, between you and me, you are fucking gorgeous...but that's not all. You are a great mom. So you're raising your son on your own, that doesn't make you any less of a person. In fact, any guy in their right mind would love to be with you. Apart from me...I have Bella," he added quickly.

"Relax, I wouldn't dream of trying to steal you from from Bella. I like her. I just wished she liked me a little more."

"Just give her time. She'll come around..."

"I've got news," Collin said, bursting through the door.

"Uh-oh. What now?"

"We've got our judge."

"Why do I have a feeling I don't want to know?"

"You don't. I'll tell you anyway. Judge Bradley."

Edward watched as Natalia's face fell—even she knew what this meant. He didn't know what to say. Bradley loathed him. It wasn't a you-annoy-me type of loathing, it was more like a you-don't-deserve-to-be-a-lawyer-and-I-want-to-drag-you-out-back-and-beat-the-shit-out-of-you type of loathing. "Fucking great!" Edward said sarcastically, banging his head off of the desk and leaving it there, forehead to papers.

Natalia got up, lifted his head up, took her folders from underneath it, and said, "I'll go grab you one of your favorite smoothies. I think you need it." Edward just groaned, still not wanting to really talk. Natalia shook her head, "I'll call your wife while I'm at it and tell her you need a good lunch."

"Tell Rose I need her while your at it," Edward muttered to her.

"She's not here today."

The news about Bradley officially went right out the window. _My sister-in-law took a day off work?_ "I don't understand what you just said. Rose wouldn't even take a day off when she had that nasty stomach flu that was going around. Are you sure?"

"Positive. I'll call her office and make sure but I tried to call her this morning to tell her about something and she wasn't around. When I went down to her department, they said she wasn't coming in today."

"I'll call her. Also, don't call Bella. I'll go home for lunch. I need to get out of here for a little while."

As soon as she was gone, Collin looked at him and sighed, "So, are we going to be able to get Bella to talk?"

"I don't want to push her. Give me some time."

"Time's ticking, Edward. The judge is set, Mike's not taking the plea, it's only a matter of time before we have a court date. We need to get the whole story from her and soon."

"Look, I'm trying here. I have a missing sister-in-law, a wife expecting twins, my wife's ex-best friend needing a rehab center—which I'm paying for, and on top of all of that, I'm trying to keep my wife from falling apart..." Edward's phone began to ring, cutting him off.

Sighing, he ran his hands through his hair. Just about to push the button to send it out to Natalia, he realized it was a call from her phone. "What?"

"Mr. Cullen, I'm sorry to bother you..."

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you," he sighed. "What's up, Nat?"

"Mrs. Cullen just walked in with her husband." It took Edward a minute to process that she wasn't talking about Bella. It was also clear that there were probably clients waiting to see him since she was being so formal. "I'm sending in Mr. Parker, he's your ten-thirty. Mr. and Mrs. Cullen said they'd wait."

_What the hell is going on? Emmett never comes down here. Why do they want me to take my client first? _Collin could see he was busy and gave a small nod before walking out. The meeting with Tom Parker was annoyingly slow, he wanted a divorce and he didn't want his wife to get a cent of the money. Edward had to explain at least six times that without a pre-nup, she was entitled to a certain amount of his assets unless certain conditions were found, which after looking through their case file, they weren't found. When he finally got rid of him, Emmett and Rosalie walked somberly through the door.

"Hey, man. We...um...we have something to tell you."

"What's going on? Did something..."

"Edward, we're getting a divorce. We can't do this anymore," Rosalie said quietly.

"We wanted to tell you first since you work with Rose," Emmett added.

"Is this really what you both want? I mean, you get along so well..." Edward was wondering if this was a joke.

"Edward, believe me, it's decided. I just don't want there to be any awkwardness between us. We're ending things now while we're still on good terms with each other," Rose said, wrapping her arms around herself.

"When are you going to let everyone know? Mom's going to be devastated and..."

"We'll do it soon."

"Are you able to tell me what happened? Why are you going to go through with this? I thought things were better between the two of you."

"They were for a little bit. I'm going to go take care of a few things in my office. If _Emmett_ wants to tell you he can," she stood up with an edge to her voice.

As soon as she was gone, Emmett shut the door and walked back over. Plopping down in a chair, he blurted, "I really fucking fucked up, man."

"What did you do, Em?"

"I told her I didn't want to be married to her if we weren't going to have children."

"Oh, Em..."

"I was mad and it just came out but it's not true and now she won't accept my apologies. She just keeps saying she's done and she wants a divorce. What else am I supposed to do? We've literally been fighting non-stop all weekend. Sunday I thought things were calming down. We went to moms, Rose came here for a little while, but she was really stressed when she got home and brought everything back up again. We've been fighting for months over this and I guess things just really escalated this morning."

"Can I tell Bella?"

"Yeah. I know she won't say anything to anyone. Just don't tell Ally. All of Seattle will know."

Edward snorted, "Ain't that the truth? Emmett, it's obvious you don't want this. Is there anything you can say to her? Do you want me to try to talk to her?"

"It won't help. We tried counseling. We tried everything. There's just too much we disagree on."

"But you both love each other..."

"It's not enough. Not anymore."

At five after twelve, Edward walked into his and Bella's apartment feeling like he wanted to break down and cry. When he saw Bella, he couldn't help but smile. His wife sat cross-legged on the floor, humming to herself, and working on some sort of art project he figured she was making for the kids at the hospital. She didn't notice him and he found himself not wanting to interrupt her. For once, Bella seemed happy. Who was he to interrupt that? _If it weren't for me, she wouldn't have anything to be scared of. The Mike Newton situation never would have happened._

He stepped back even further so she wouldn't see him. The only news he had to give her was bad. Finally, he took a couple deep breaths and walked towards her. She must have sensed him because she turned her neck and smiled when she saw him. "Hey, love, whatcha doing home?"

"Lunch. I needed a break and wanted to come see you."

"Oh, well, I can make you a sandwich," Bella said, getting up slowly from the floor.

He took her hand and helped her. "I'll come with you. We really need to talk about some things and I don't have long before I have to be back."

Once she was busy assembling two sandwiches, one with lunch meat and one without, Edward began, "We found out who the judge for your case is today. They're moving forward quickly with everything."

"Do you know the person?"

"Yeah, I do. Bella, it's Bradley."

Dropping the butter knife she was using, Bella spun around to face him. She'd heard Edward complain about the guy ever since he started working for Trenton. The judge was a chauvinistic pig who Edward always seemed to clash with. Even his wife, who he tried to keep away from his work, knew having Bradley as a judge was just simply bad news. "Can't you like ask for someone new or something? I mean, I don't think this is very fair..."

"My hands are tied on this one. It's not changing. That's something else we need to talk about. O'Brien told me you haven't given a statement about everything that happened that night..."

"He raped me. End of story."

"Bells, come on, you know that's not what we need to win this."

She set both sandwiches on the table and slid into her chair. "I don't want to."

"You really don't have a choice if we are going to get him put away. This isn't about how long he'll be in for anymore, it's about whether or not he's going to walk out of court a free man. Think about that one. What are you going to do if he shows up here?"

Watching her reaction broke his heart. She visibly shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't want to," she repeated again.

"What if I go with you? What if we just hang out in my office, like any other time, we'll put a recorder on and you can talk. Tell us what happened from the beginning to the end." Bella was crying now, tears rolled down her cheeks as she just stared at her food, not taking another bite.

Standing up, he came around the table and knelt in front of her, "Baby, I'm not going to let him or anyone else hurt you. I swear on my life I will not let Mike Newton hurt you ever again. Nothing bad is going to happen while we're in court. I really need you to do this, though, angel. I'm begging you."

"Never swear on your life," Bella said, still crying.

"Will you do this for us Bells? Will you help us put him behind bars for good?" His face was getting closer to hers and soon after he kissed her lips gently.

"Is this how you get all of your clients to talk, Mr. Cullen?" His wife smiled through her tears.

"Well, no, just this one girl..."

"Oh, really?" Bella asked, knowing he was joking.

"Yeah, just this absolutely fucking hot brunette, she comes to visit me sometimes...I ate her out on my desk once. I think she's pregnant with some losers twins though," Edward said, shaking his head as if it was too sad for him to handle. Getting serious again, he took her hand, "You do know that I will never let anyone hurt you like that again, right?"

"I know."

"Then help us. Your testimony could be enough on its own for the jury to find him guilty."

"Fine. When? When do I have to do this?"

"Tomorrow. I don't have any appointments in the afternoon. Collin will be there and so will a recorder. We need to have the whole story."

"Are _you_ going to be able to handle the whole story?"

"Neither of us have a choice," Edward whispered.

She was already shaking in fear and now he had to tell her about his brother's news. _Way to take her from humming happily to scaring the hell out of her. Why not just devastate her while you're at it, Cullen? _Deciding he just couldn't tell her at the moment, he went back over to his seat and sat down. "You need to eat, Bella."

"I know," she replied quietly, beginning to pick at her sandwich. He knew she wasn't going to finish it.

"Why don't we go for dinner tonight. Somewhere nice. Let's get out of here for awhile. We could go to Harrington's."

Bella smiled, "I'd like that."

Edward smiled back at her. He felt like such a dick, like he was lying to her but he just couldn't quite tell her. He figured he take her to her favorite restaurant, get her to eat at least one decent meal today, and then he would break the news. "I'd like that, too. Please try to keep eating. The babies need food, too." To his surprise, she finished off the rest of her sandwich, though it looked like she had to force it down. He really fucking loved this woman.

**Big trouble in paradise for Emmett and Rosalie. Bella giving testimony to what happened to her. Edward hearing the whole story for the first time. Until then, LP xoxo**


	33. Chapter 33

**Sorry this took 3 days to finish. It was a difficult chapter to write and I must have changed the ending about three hundred times. I hope you enjoy it! Cait, I don't know what I'd do without you! Also, my dear reviewers...LOTS of big hugs :) I didn't forget about you but didn't get to comment back...but I will! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End:Edward smiled back at her. He felt like such a dick, like he was lying to her but he just couldn't quite tell her. He figured he take her to her favorite restaurant, get her to eat at least one decent meal today, and then he would break the news. "I'd like that, too. Please try to keep eating. The babies need food, too." To his surprise, she finished off the rest of her sandwich, though it looked like she had to force it down. He really fucking loved this woman.**

**Chapter 33**

Later that evening, they sat across from each other at Bella's favorite restaurant. They'd been making small talk since he'd gotten home from work and he suspected she knew there more bad news to be told. She'd always known him so well. After he actually asked her about the weather, she finally asked, "What is it? I know you aren't telling me something."

He played with the condensation on his beer glass, trying to figure out what to say. After a long moment, he sighed, "Emmett and Rosalie are getting a divorce."

Bella choked on the water she was drinking and he jumped up. Once Bella was able to speak she held her hand up. "I'm fine! I'm fine. Just surprised. I thought things were better between them. What the hell happened?"

"Em said it was the whole baby issue again but I have a feeling there's something else going on. I can't see the two of them giving up on a marriage just because of that."

"You didn't exactly want to stay with me when I said I didn't want children."

"I never would have left you, Bella. I couldn't have done it if I tried. Had it not been for you shoving me away, I never would have even moved out. I mean, of course I want kids but that wouldn't be enough for me to give you up."

"How did you find out about this anyway?"

"Em and Rose stopped in to see me. They wanted me to know before word spread around the office."

"They even showed up together? They get along so well around us! This is a mistake!"

"I know. I tried to tell him that. He's convinced it's what they need to do. I guess they were fighting a lot when no one is around. _Our_ almost-divorce nearly ruined my life. I just hope they both know what they're getting themselves into."

"I'm just kind of in shock I guess."

"Yeah, me too. They don't want anyone to know so don't mention anything to mom and Ally yet, okay?"

"Yeah," she said quietly.

"Are you alright?"

"No. Edward, they are making a huge, huge mistake. I know they said they fight a lot but they love each other and all they're going to do is hurt each other!"

"I know but what am I supposed to say to them? I'm a divorce lawyer, not a couple's counselor. It's not like I made the right choices with our situation."

"They are going to divorce. Then, have to find separate houses. Rose is beautiful and she's going to find some guy and Emmett is Emmett, he's going to find some girl and they'll hook up and those people are going to be really pretty and they're still going to love each other and they'll eventually get back together and they'll never forgive each other..."

Edward had let her ramble because she seemed so upset but that definitely got his attention. He let her keep going and realized maybe this was her way of subconsciously telling him how she really still feels about everything. "I love you, Bella," he eventually interrupted her.

She stopped and took a deep breath. "I love you, too."

"Just like Jazz said to Ally about us. We can't really object to a divorce."

"So, you have all of my appointments canceled for this afternoon? I don't want any interruptions at all. I don't care if the fucking President of the United States is outside of my door. Do not let him or anyone else in."

"If anyone tries, if I can't handle them, I'll call security," Natalia smiled.

"Good."

"Edward, is she going to be able to do this?" Natalia asked, getting serious.

"I really don't know."

After a little bit of thoughtful silence, she looked up, "I heard about Rose and Emmett. I can't believe it. They've been together for like...ever."

"I know. I was shocked when they came in to tell me yesterday."

"I heard Rose is having Collin draw up the divorce papers today already. She obviously wants this over with. Fast."

"What? My mom and Alice don't even know yet! They decided this yesterday!"

"I heard from Rose...and rumors around the office that it's been a long time coming."

"I...I haven't heard anything..."

"Edward, hon, no offense but you've been so caught up in your own problems you haven't really been around for office gossip..."

"What rumors? Just that they are fighting? What?" Edward was offended that other people knew and not him.

"I don't know if I...

"Natalia, if everyone else knows I deserve to know. Spit it out. What rumors?"

He watched her open and close her mouth twice before finally saying quietly, "The rumor is...Edward, you can't tell her you found out from me. She could get me fired."

"Rose wouldn't do that. I know her."

"She might. Edward, she was seeing someone else."

Taking a step back from Natalia's desk, he shook his head in disbelief. "No way. This is a total fucking joke. There's no way she was cheating on my brother. No fucking way!"

"Shhh...calm down," then as he walked away she called, "where are you going?"

"To see my soon to be ex sister-in-law."

"Why the hell are you doing this to him, Rose?" Edward demanded as soon as he threw the door open.

Rose was sitting at her computer and looked up in surprise, "Wh-what are you talking about?"

"Don't play stupid with me. Who's the guy, Rose?"

He saw even more surprise cross her face after he asked her. She looked like she wanted to melt into the carpet and disappear. "Edward...it was only twice..."

"Who, Rose?" Edward demanded.

"I...I can't...I'll admit that I slept with someone else. I can't tell you who it is. I won't."

"Does Emmett know?"

"Yes. This divorce isn't just about a baby, Edward. I admitted it to him. I snuck out one night, God, just like a fucking teenage girl...anyway, my lies got twisted and he knew something wasn't right. I told him."

"Does he know who it is?"

"No."

"How could you do this to him? You know what, Rosalie? The saddest fucking part of this whole damn thing is, he thinks it's his fucking fault! He thinks you did this because you didn't want a baby! You are making him feel like this is all on him because he's Emmett. Full-hearted, loving Em. He wouldn't hurt a fly but he protected you and Bella...and...Ally like you were his entire life! You _were _his entire fucking life!"

"Oh, well Mr. Hypocrite, why don't we talk about you're little adventures away from Bella? How many girls? You seriously think I don't know about them? That Emmett didn't tell me? He told me everything..."

"Don't you dare compare this to what happened between Bella and I!"

"It's the same damn thing, Edward. You couldn't deal with life so you went out, got trashed, and fucked someone just so you could pretend you were worth a damn to someone! Same. Damn. Thing."

"Bella and I weren't living together...we weren't living at all! We both made mistakes! What you did to you and Emmett's marriage is completely unacceptable!"

"What? You and Tanya Denali fucking each other while Bella was held down and brutally raped by Mike Newton was acceptable?"

Edward could tell by her face that she really, really regretted saying that. It didn't stop the pain he felt tear through him. She was right and he knew it. Silence fell between the two of them, neither knowing what to say. Finally, Rose walked around the desk and over to him. "I never...I didn't mean it. I swear I didn't mean for that to be said. I'm so, so sorry. Edward, I..."

"Don't. It's true. I have to go...Bella will be here soon..."

"Edward, wait!" Rose called after him, grabbing his arm and pulling him back to her. "I didn't know Emmett felt this was his fault. I thought he was just blaming me...I could deal him blaming me. I'll talk to him. I know I've fucked up. I also know that you love Bella and regret what happened to her. You blame yourself, too. You shouldn't, though. What I said was very, very wrong and I was just upset. You are the best brother-in-law a girl could ever ask for and I love you. If you need anything, help with Bella, help with the babies, help with the case, you know where I work."

Edward found Bella sitting in his office wringing her hands. The past twenty-four hours, all he could think of was Bella telling him the whole story. While a part of him wanted to plead with her to not make him hear it, to wait outside, he knew she needed him more than that. Walking into his office, he knelt down and pulled her into a hug, whispering, "I'm right here. I'm..."

"Hey, guys," Collin interrupted, coming in and setting his recorder and briefcase down on Edward's desk, "Are we ready?"

Edward could feel Bella tense. She surprised him by clearing her throat and saying, "I have a request."

Edward and Collin exchanged glances before looking at her. When they didn't say anything, Bella whispered, "I don't want Edward in the room."

He felt like the room had just shifted. There was no way in hell he was leaving her with Collin alone to do this. He knew she was safe but Collin wasn't exactly the most sensitive person in the world. Besides, he knew the questions his colleague planned to grill his wife with after she told her story. That part was going to be hard for him to hear, let alone the unsuspecting Bella. It had to be done, though. She had to know what to expect in court.

"Bella," Edward began, "either way, I'm going to hear it. Whether it be now or reviewing the case or in court. I don't want to hear it for the first time in front of a roomful of people. I need to hear this."

"You're going to hate me," Bella cried.

"I could never hate you, Bells. I'm staying. You need moral support more than dignity right now. I'm staying."

"Fine. Let's get this over with."

Five minutes later, Collin had everything set up. Bella was in Edward's big, comfy chair and the two guys sat opposite her in the client chairs. The recorder was in front of them and Collin held his notebook and pen. "Okay, Bells, I'm not going to cue you too often in the beginning. This is your story to tell, no one else's. I'll only cue you if you seem like you're getting confused or if you get stuck and don't know what to say. It's important that you don't say 'I can't remember'. If you can't remember something, stay silent and I'll cue you. I have some questions lined up that you need to be ready to answer. Those won't be recorded so when I turn the recorder off at the end, sit tight, and I'll fire away. Edward, you can't make a sound. You really shouldn't even be present for this. Are we ready?"

Edward and Bella exchanged a glance before nodding their heads. As soon as Collin clicked 'record', Bella took a deep breath and began. "The night it happened, I was invited out to the bar with two friends, Angela and Ben. They told me that they had a friend who would be coming along. When they picked me up, Mike was with them. He seemed nice and I didn't think much of it. Throughout the night, he began to buy me drinks and tried to get me to dance. I was uncomfortable at first and eventually, Angela ended up getting sick so we left the bar. I told Ben to drop us off at my place and I would take Mike home so Ben could just worry about Angela."

Edward noticed her hands were shaking and he reached across the table and took them in his own, trying to calm her. She was getting more and more upset. After a lot of silence, Collin finally asked, "Did you go straight from the bar? What happened after you left?"

"I...I...Ben dropped us off. I had been drinking and so had Mike and I decided to just let him stay the night," Bella cringed and wouldn't meet Edward's eyes. He wanted to tell her it was okay but knew it would mess up the entire recording. "I told him he could sleep on the couch and went upstairs to the linen closet for a blanket and pillow. When I turned around, he was right...behind me. He grabbed me and...I didn't want to go to the bedroom...he wanted...I couldn't..."

His wife was now in tears, gripping his hands like lifelines. "I knew he wouldn't take no for an answer. He was getting aggressive...I was scared...I tried to run and I can..." Bella stopped herself—he assumed she almost said she couldn't remember something. "I fell down the stairs. I tripped... I just wanted to get to the door." It was becoming harder for her to talk and she stopped to collect herself.

"Did you make it to the door?" Collin prompted after a long while.

"Eventually. He held me down on my stomach by my waist. Then, he picked me up and threw me at the wall..." The word 'wall' came out breathlessly and she took a couple deep breaths before continuing. "I kicked him, I think, and was able to get to the door but he stopped me from opening it. He told me I couldn't...I wasn't leaving...and I tried to fight him but I...I wasn't...it was too hard."

"What was too hard?" asked Collin.

"Getting away from him. I couldn't. He...he pushed me into a table and...there was blood..."

"Where was there blood, Bella?"

"My face. He took me to where the living room steps are and...I ca..." she stopped herself again.

Collin looked at him as if to say, 'This is what happens every time.' Edward grabbed a post-it and pen and wrote 'You have to try,' before pushing it towards her. She shook her head in defeat and he got up from his chair and pulled it over so he was right beside her.

"What happened when you got to the living room steps? Did you fall again?"

"No," Bella said, sitting up straight, like she could remember what happened now. "He threw me into the glass coffee table. It broke. I was bleeding more. He kept picking me up and pushing me down into the glass."

She stopped after barely getting the word 'glass' out. Edward was fighting nausea to the point that he'd even pulled his garbage can over. Bella looked like she was fighting the same battle. "What happened next, Bella?" It was clear that she was having trouble remembering.

"I...I was bleeding. There was blood everywhere. My throat hurt..."

"Why did your throat hurt?"

"I was screaming."

"At Mr. Newton?"

"No. For...for Edward."

"By Edward, you mean Mr. Cullen? Your husband?"

"Yes," Bella said quietly.

"Was he anywhere near you at the time?"

"No."

"Then why yell for him? Did you want him to come protect you? Does he usually protect you?"

Bella was holding back sobs, "Yes. He...he always...does..."

"What happened next, Bella?"

"He...picked...he threw me. I hit the window. I used a book so it would break...I hit it with a book... It broke but I couldn't get out...he...he held me down," she choked through tears. "I was so scared. I thought...he was pushing on my hips and I...didn't want him to break them."

"Break your hips?" Collin asked. Edward kept fighting back the bile in his throat.

"Yeah. He was holding me down. He ripped my clothes. He told me he wanted everyone to hear us. He wanted Edward to drive past and see. He told me he wanted me to fight. He told me he liked it. He had a knife. He told me he'd cut me if I kept fighting. So I quit...I gave up," Edward could tell she was ashamed of this part and slid his chair closer, wrapping his arms around her. This seemed to give her enough strength to continue.

"He had sex with me. He pinched me and hit me. When he was done...he threw me and I think I passed out...when I woke up he wasn't there and I called Esme."

"Who's Esme, Bella?"

"My mother-in-law. She came and got me. Mike was gone. She and my father-in-law took me to the hospital."

Collin hit the stop button and Bella pushed her chair back, gripping the edge of his desk and taking deep breaths. It was clear that she didn't want touched...he couldn't blame her. He wanted to kill Mike even more for what he'd done to her. He'd known it was bad...but never could he imagine it was _this_ bad. Collin launched into the questions. "Mrs. Cullen, you said you are clumsy. Is it possible that you fell and that these injuries were self-inflicted?"

Bella looked at him shocked and Edward wanted to cry. If she couldn't handle this—wait until the last few questions. She finally composed herself, slightly, and said, "_He_ put his hands up and _shoved_ me. _He_ picked me up by my waist and _threw_ me. I _didn't_ trip and fall."

"Mrs. Cullen, is it true that you invited Mr. Newton willingly into your home even though you hardly knew him?"

"Yes but..."

"And is it true that you still weren't divorced?"

"Yes..."

"Mrs. Cullen, Miss Denali claims that your husband was with her the whole night this happened. Is it safe to say that he would be upset had he known you invited a man back to your home?"

"Yes, he didn't want the divorce."

"Ah, so he wasn't happy with your relationship. Are you aware of how much money your husband has?"

"Yes."

"You grew up very poor, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Is it true that there was no pre-nuptial agreement signed?"

"Yes but he..."

"Is it true that the death of you and Mr. Cullen's son was due to a fall?"

Bella's head snapped up. Edward braced himself. "What does that have to do with..."

"Answer the question. Is your clumsiness the reason Mr. Cullen's baby died?"

After a long pause and Collin asking her again, she breathed out, "Yes."

Edward shook his head. That question was the one he'd been terrified to hear about. Of course she would go along with it and blame herself. He didn't' know if the judge would rule that a fair question or not but he had to know she could handle it.

"So, you were cheating on your husband, inviting men into your home, trying to get your husband's money, and grieving as much as you could grieve for a child that was killed because you are, and I quote, 'clumsy.'" Edward and Bella both glared at him. That little summary was not something Collin had filled him in on. Though, it was exactly what the defense would say to convince the jury. "No further questions."

Bella was sobbing now and as Edward reached for her, she shoved him away, still not wanting contact. He could not longer stay in that small office. Shoving his chair back, he walked out the door and across the hall to a small, empty meeting room. Sinking into a chair, he put his elbows on his knees and gripped his hair with both hands, begging himself not to vomit.

Bella watched as Edward walked out, obviously upset. She had never truly hated anyone before, now she hated herself with a passion. She wanted to die when she thought of all the hurt she'd put him through. Collin was right. She was a whore who deserved what she got. Standing up, she left the room also, only she went into the girl's room. Five minutes later, mascara free from rubbing her eyes, Bella walked past the meeting room.

Edward was sitting in a chair; Natalia had pulled a chair up to him so that they were knee to knee. To her surprise, he was sobbing with his head down. Natalia was rubbing his back, which was hunched over as he moved up and down with each sob. _He doesn't __need you__ right now, Bella. You'll just remind him of how badly you hurt him. Just go home__._ Bella grabbed her coat from Edward's office, Collin was gone...as well as the recorder. Getting into her car, she drove to the house.

Going straight to the entertainment room, Bella grabbed her IPod off of one of her bookshelves and curled onto her little lounge. She scrolled through her music until she came to the one marked 'Unknown'. There were hundreds of songs, all recorded by Edward, who put them onto the small, purple IPod for her. Most were just him playing someone else's work but others were originals. She found the lullaby he'd written when they'd first met and hit play. As the melody began to flow, so did the tears. Sobbing, Bella gave into the grief and devastation she felt, wondering if she could ever redeem herself.

About ten songs later, Bella heard a loud slam over the music. She sat up straight, ready to go into panic mode. Pulling her head phones off, she heard her husband yelling for her. Jumping up, she ran towards the living room and heard him calling for her upstairs. He sounded frantic and she took off up the stairs. What she saw devastated her. Edward was saying her name over and over again as he made a mess of the room. He must have thrown the lamp off of the bedside table and everything that was on their dresser was now all over the floor. She walked in just in time to see him slam the bathroom door closed behind him, a few seconds later, she heard him throwing up.

Sitting on the bed, tears still running down her cheeks, Bella looked up ten minutes later when he came out. He looked white as a sheet and his eyes were red and puffy. "Bella..."

She gasped as he sped towards her and knelt down, "I couldn't...why did you leave...you didn't...you just left..."

"Edward, I'm fine. I saw how upset you were and I didn't want to hurt you anymore..."

"Do you have any idea how scared I was?" he demanded. Bella was surprised, she never saw him angry like this, "I got back and you were gone! I've been trying to call you. Natalia and Collin are both out looking for you! What the hell were you thinking?"

Bella began to cry harder, "I didn't mean to upset you! I just wanted to give you some space."

Running his hands through his hair, he sat back on his heels, "I didn't mean to yell. I've just been freaking out...are you okay, Bella? It's you I'm worried about...not me having space." He reached up and put his hand on her bump.

Bella stood and pulled him towards her. On her tiptoes, she was just about to kiss him when he pulled away. "Edward, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you this much!"

"It's not that, angel. You really don't want to kiss me right now. Not until I've brushed my teeth..."

"Oh."

He stepped back from her and pulled out his phone. He hit a number that was on speed dial and held it to his ear. "Nat, I've found her. Call Collin and tell him she's okay. Are you heading back to the office? Okay, then, can you lock my office up? Thanks. When you're ready, feel free to go home. I'll work your time sheet out when I come in tomorrow. I'm going to have a good many late nights there these next couple of weeks so if you want the over time I'll work that out, too. Just giving you a heads up. See you in the morning. Bye."

"I feel really bad...I'm sorry..."

"Don't worry about it. I probably over-reacted, no, I know I did...I just thought about you and the babies and the stress and I panicked."

"So, what's this about late nights?" Bella asked as they both sat down on the bed.

"I've been missing a lot of work again and it's not so much that I have to make up hours but I really need to get my ass in gear and get organized. I have a lot of clients to catch up with and I have court on Thursday to prepare for. I know I'll be home really late tomorrow. There's not much I can do about it."

"Okay," Bella said with a small smile. She'd never tell him but she hated when he was gone that long.

"I wanted to let you know, we got the court date this morning, too. I didn't want to upset you even more than what you were earlier."

"When is it?"

"Three months. Well, one day less than three months. Not that I'm counting..."

"Edward, I'll be over six months along by then."

"I know but that's the earliest they would do it. If you end up on bed rest during that last trimester, which with the twins I have a feeling you will be, it's going to cause problems. Collin explained the situation and they pushed it up. They're already talking about interviewing for the jury."

"Okay. Three months minus one day it is. Now, go brush your teeth and get back out here. We still have a whole years worth of making up to do. Oh, and I think this weekend should be dedicated to moving back here. Completely. I'm ready to do this."

**Next update will not be a long wait but it won't be a short one either. Student teaching is kind of kicking my butt. I'm working chapter by chapter so give me time so I don't have to give you guys a crappy chapter :) Until next time, LP**


	34. Chapter 34

**I am thinking that there are probably not that many chapters left to this story. I know how I intended to end it and that event will happen but I want to stop there. I have an idea for another story and who knows, maybe I'll pick this one back up later but it's coming to an end for now. We have a few more chapters to go (I'm thinking threeish) and I hope all of you will check out the new story, which I intend to begin writing and updating just as often and as soon as this is finished. **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End:"Okay. Three months minus one day it is. Now, go brush your teeth and get back out here. We still have a whole years worth of making up to do. Oh, and I think this weekend should be dedicated to moving back here. Completely. I'm ready to do this."**

**Chapter 34**

To Bella's annoyance, her moving weekend plan did not go in anyway how she'd _planned_ it to. With the divorce of Rosalie and Emmett taking their family by storm, the weekend went from one of no plans, to one of insanity. On Friday, Edward was stuck at work...which he was home for a total of sixteen hours since that Tuesday...when Bella got a call from Esme. Obviously, Emmett had told his parents because they were both wanting to know what all she knew. So, she gave them the details—leaving out the part where Edward told her Rose was supposedly cheating—that wasn't her story to tell. On Friday night, she ended up with his family for dinner and a movie.

This was normal, until Livy and Ally both got sick and Jasper's car ended up breaking down half way home from the business trip he was on. While Alice slept, Bella watched over Livy so that Esme and Carlisle could go pick up their son-in-law, three hours away. Emmett was out, and as they found when Edward had to leave work to go pick him up from the bar, he wasn't handling his newly divorced status as well as they'd all hoped.

Edward and Bella both stayed at his parents, taking care of Livy all night until about four am when Jasper, Esme, and Carlisle finally made it back. Emmett was passed out on the couch and Carlisle and Esme went up to bed. For the first time since Edward was in high school, everyone at the house ended up sleeping in until noon. The plan was for everyone to eat lunch and then Emmett was going to help them move. This would have worked had Collin not called Edward and told him he needed help with the case. With a kiss and an apology, her husband went back in for his fifty-fourth hour of work that week.

Emmett agreed to still help her but when they got to the apartment—which Bella drove to on account that her brother-in-law was still half drunk—Emmett seemed more taken with the damn, beautiful Kiera than helping Bella. So, Bella did the best she could with the help she had. She loaded all of Jasper Cat's things into the car, came back up, packed Edward Jr's things, came back up, then grabbed her seventeen pound cat, and her brother-in-law and drove to the old house. "You realize your brother already did her?" Bella asked drly when they were pulling up outside the house.

"Edward? When?"

"About a year ago."

"Oh. That was the landlord's daughter?"

"Yup," Bella said, popping the 'p'.

Sunday dinner had gone great but Jasper needed to go get his car and he called to see if they could watch Livy. So, after lunch, they took the baby and drove over the apartment. It turned into more hassle than anything so Edward grabbed his suits and essentials and gave up on the moving idea. Now, over two months later, Bella's bump was a bowling ball, Edward had put more hours in than most people do in six months, Emmett was on a downward spiral, Livy was growing fast, and they still hadn't fucking moved out of the damn apartment.

"Edward, we seriously need to get things together on the home front. We have not one but two babies on the way and nothing is _bought_ for two babies. We have s_omethings_ for one. That's it. I need some help here!"

"Bella, your court case is in five days. I'm trying to help Collin and Rosalie with everything..."

"It's not just my case, though. You've been having court days after court days to get ready for. I need you at home!"

"We don't have that much to do yet, Bells..."

"What about a carseats? Bottle's? Diapers? You know, something could happen...if the babies come early we're screwed."

"Then take my card and go get them."

"I can't lift this stuff! Edward, we swore...we swore when we got pregnant the second time that this wouldn't happen again. The first time, you were your normal workaholic self and didn't help me at all. Thank God Jazz helped me. We swore that we wouldn't take this baby for granted and sometimes I feel like you forget I'm even pregnant!"

"That's not fair! I'm excited about this and you know that! Let me talk to Emmett, I'll see if he can take you.."

"I don't want Emmett! I want you!" Bella knew she sounded like a whining child but enough was enough.

"Fine, as soon as your case is over, we'll go shopping. You're the one that talked Alice out of having a shower..."

"We don't need money or presents, Edward. We have money. That's the only good thing about these ridiculous hours you've been working."

"Okay, then we'll try to go this weekend. I have to get somethings in order for tomorrow. I have a meeting in the morning."

"Whatever. I'm going to Ally's. You'll probably still be up when I get home but if not, when are you picking me up tomorrow or do you just want me to meet you at work?"

Edward was flipping through a bunch of papers when he looked up at her. "Are you coming for lunch?"

"I was going to wait until after the appointment to eat...you forgot. You forgot that we're going to find out what the babies are tomorrow. Awesome job there, daddy," Bella said rolling her eyes and going to put her shoes on, "I have to be there at 11:30. I'll get your mom to take me."

"No! I'll work it out. I'll pick you up here at a quarter after. I'm sorry, Bells..."

Bella shook her head and reached for the door knob, "I just hope you realize that I didn't marry you so that I could end up taking care of your kids all by myself. We're having _two_, Edward. Two. You seriously need to step up. I know you have to work but you have responsibilities to take care of here. Your wife and children are the main ones." She pulled the door open and headed off to Alice's.

Edward's case load was more than enough work to keep three lawyers busy. Add in his wife's case and he had one hell of headache. It seemed when he wasn't at work, he was trying to pick his brother back up from whatever hell he'd found himself in. Walking up to the nursery, he opened the door and put down his briefcase in front of the crib. Getting comfortable on the floor, he settle in for a night of reading and reviewing. He couldn't focus to save his life.

Bella was right. He'd been a shitty husband their first year of marriage and an even shittier one now. The truth was, if he settled in and helped her get ready for the babies to come, that made it real. Of course he wanted the kids but it scared the hell out him. It was nice that he got to be around Livy a lot but that's all the experience he'd really had with infants. Now, he would be responsible for two of them.

Then, of course, there was this whole deal with Jacob. Every three weeks, the patient's sponsor is supposed to pay a visit. The problem with this rehab center was almost five hours away and he couldn't take off work. Natalia needed the money. He felt terrible that she put hours in that were almost as long as his and yet she made a small fraction of what he did. Unlike the other people he worked with, she was the most down to Earth and actually needed her job.

When Jacob had called during the first few days of treatment, he'd left the message with Natalia that Edward needed to drive out there for meetings every few weeks. When she told him, Edward had just been given yet another case because of Rosalie's little life crisis. Natalia, God bless her, volunteered to become Jacob's sponsor. At first, Edward didn't want her to do it and kindly said thanks but no thanks. Jacob wasn't stable yet and he didn't want her to get hurt. Also, it was a huge pain in the ass to have to drive that far for someone you didn't even know.

When the day he was supposed to go came up, Edward ended up late in court and had no choice but to call his trusty secretary. Though he knew she didn't mind helping or she wouldn't have offered, Edward told her he'd pay for gas and give her a nice monetary gift. After talking to Jacob, who was just happy to not have to deal with the awkwardness of Edward being his sponsor, Edward gave her the okay to go. She didn't say much when she came back the first time but after a few more visits he got a bit of a surprise. It was no secret from the way Natalia talked about her new friend that she wanted more than just a friendship with Jacob, she had fallen in love with him.

He had no clue how Jacob felt about the situation and really needed to talk to him. Natalia was a good person with a little boy, Jacob was a drunk who was in love with someone else's wife. He just didn't want to see her or her son end up hurt. Bella had no idea about any of this. He wanted to tell her but Jacob had made him promise the day he left for treatment that it would stay between the two of them. Even Billy was out of the loop.

Unable to get any work done, Edward got up and grabbed his laptop. Typing in the brand name of the baby furniture that was already bought, he found which stores carried it. He knew Bella couldn't do this on her own and he swore to himself that after the appointment tomorrow, he'd take the rest of the day off, and they'd go at least order what they needed. Edward's phone began to ring just as he was finished jotting down notes on where to buy what.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. I'm sorry to bug you but I'm going to be late tomorrow. Alex's fever is sky high and I can't take him to daycare this way. When mom gets off work, she's going to watch him but I probably won't be in until about 9:30."

"No problem. Is he okay?"

"Yeah, I think it's just a touch of the cold."

"Okay. While you're on the phone, I'm actually leaving early tomorrow..."

"Thank freaking God! Edward, you need to get out of that damn office!"

"I've told you a hundred times. If I miss something in Bella's case..."

"You'll never forgive yourself," Natalia answered for him, "I get it. I do but Edward like _I've_ told _you _a hundred times, you have Rose, yourself, and Collin picking that case with a fine tooth comb. You are one of the best groups of lawyers out there. Mike did this to her. Please, don't worry so much about this. Get ready for your babies to come!"

"I know, I know. I just can't stop working...I mean...sometime soon I'll talk to Trenton but..."

He heard her sigh over the phone before saying, "Alex needs me. I'll see you...actually...I might be a little later than nine. I'll call you if I won't make it by ten."

"Don't worry about work right now. Take care of Alex. Tell him I said hi."

"Will do. See you tomorrow, boss."

Edward laughed at that and closed his phone, the time read 10:36. Standing up after being in a cross-legged position on the floor for two hours made him groan. He gathered up everything and walked into the bedroom. Just as he was getting undressed, he heard someone coming up the steps. "It's just me," his wife said, opening the bedroom door.

"How are the Whitlocks?"

"Tired. Livy's teething. I told Alice I'd take her for a little while on Friday."

"Bella, you can't wear yourself out..."

"Honey, I'm having a baby, I'm not terminally ill. I'll be fine taking care of Livy. You do realize I'll be raising both of ours at the same time, right? From the looks of it, I'll be doing it alone."

"Bella...I'm sorry I forgot about tomorrow. I just have a lot on my mind..."

"It's fine. I'm tired. Let's get some sleep," she yawned as she pulled off her maternity clothes and threw on an old shirt of his. Her belly stuck out and Edward wanted nothing more than to hold her with his hand resting over his little ones.

"We can go to bed soon but first, I have something for you."

"Hm?" Bella asked, obviously exhausted.

He handed her the piece of paper where he'd written all of the information about where to find the furniture. "What...oh. Is this the stores for the baby furniture?"

"Yes. Tomorrow, after the appointment, we'll spend the afternoon together. We can go to the stores and order the bigger things and then go start stocking up on diapers, bottles, whatever we need."

"You promise? No work?" He watched his wife's face light up.

"None. I'm all yours, angel," he said, before kissing her on the forehead and sliding over to her in bed.

The next morning, Bella showered and headed downstairs for breakfast. It was nine thirty when she heard a knock on the door. Getting up slowly from their couch, Bella went to the front door and looked out the peephole. _What the hell is she doing here?_

"Natalia. What's going on?"

"Bella, I really need to talk to you. Are you busy right now?"

"Natalia, I'm 6 months pregnant with twins. I don't exactly have a super social life..." Bella laughed.

"Mind if we sit down and talk then?"

"No, come on in," _Please don't say you slept with him. Please don't say you slept with him. Please don't say you slept with him. _It went through Bella's head like a prayer.

Once they were seated at the kitchen table, Natalia took a deep breath and began—though not before every scenario ever ran through her mind about what could have happened between the two of them. "It's obviously no surprise that Edward works like a crazy person. It's not normal. He keeps using the excuse of working on your case but you should see the case load he's taken on from other clients, also. Yesterday, Trenton stopped by and Edward actually asked him if there was any other ones he needed to take! He was volunteering for more! He has three different court hearings next week. For three different people. All of which are pretty high profile cases. One isn't even a divorce case and I don't even know how he ended up with it. Bella, it's really not my place to be telling you this, and he's going to be so pissed, but I'm worried about him."

Bella took a deep breath to process what Natalia was telling her. Honestly, she had already known or at least suspected what she was now hearing. Something was definitely going on with him and she had no clue what it was. Of course, she was only seeing the side where he never came home and when he did he was so exhausted he'd go to bed or down coffee after coffee—which he didn't even like-to stay awake so he could get work done. She knew he was going over her case like a crazy person but not that he was taking tons of cases on as well.

"He forgot the doctors appointment we have for later today. We're supposed to find out the sex of the babies and he forgot," Bella said, tired of his crap.

"If it's any consolation, he talks about you and the babies all the time. I don't think it's anything against you...is he...okay, way over my bounds here...but I mean, he's still seeing Kathy right?"

"From what I know, he is."

"I was just wondering. He's been leaving every Tuesday morning, which I have scheduled for him, but I mean, don't you think she should be saying something about this not being okay."

"I'm not going to see her next week because of the case but I'll hopefully see her the week after. I'll mention it to her. I mean, well, she already knows because I talk about it once in awhile. Probably not enough to throw red flags, though. We've been talking a lot about me and the babies and what I need to do to get ready for this. Hopefully, that's what they're talking about too."

"He's not sleeping at work and he's leaving really, really late some nights. I don't stay late because by eight he's pretty much just reviewing things and doesn't need my help, plus I have Alex at home to take care of. I'm just really worried he's going to fall asleep behind the wheel or he's going to drive himself to an early grave because he's not getting any rest. I just wanted you to know what's going on."

"Alright, I'll talk to him. I've been so focused on the pregnancy that I've been mad at him for this. I never thought that maybe he's having an issue with something."

"Can I ask you for a favor?"

"What's up?"

"Can you not tell him I was here? I mean, if you have to...I just don't want him to fire me."

Bella snorted, "Natalia, can I tell you something? As much as you get under my skin working so closely with him, he really likes you and I don't think you have to worry about that. I'll talk to him but I won't mention you unless I have to."

"Thanks, Bella. I know you're not exactly my number one fan and I know you know I wanted more with him when I started there. Not that he's not amazing...but...he really, truly loves you. Rosalie talked to me, and I'd never tell him what was said because he's a guy. She didn't tell me to stay away because he was married, she told me to stay away because he loved someone else deeply and he wanted to be with her. It's rare to hear that about any guy."

Bella gave a small smile, "As long as you remember that he's mine we won't have any problems. To be honest, I'm glad he has someone there to take care of him at work. He gives off the impression that he's calm and collected all the time but it's just a show. He's usually worrying and anxious."

They both stood up and began to walk towards the door when Natalia looked down at the photo album on the table in the foyer. Bella watched her linger for a minute, looking at the group picture on the front. Finally, she said, "I grew up on the La Push reservation."

"Yeah, um, Edward mentioned it."

"He doesn't like that Jake and I are...were," Bella corrected herself, "so close."

"Oh. Did something happen between you and Jake?"

_How does she know him well enough to call him Jake? Edward never calls him that..._ "No. I met Edward and I...well, it's a long story. A long, complicated story. It doesn't matter anymore."

"Why not?"

"Jake's...he's not well," Bella felt her eyes tear up, "I'm sorry. I'll...um...I'll talk to Edward about working so much. Thank you for talking to me." Just as Natalia was about to leave, Bella said, "Natalia, just so you know, I love my husband very, very much. Please, keep respecting that."

With a smile, she looked at Bella and said, "Always."

Knowing she had time, Bella decided to drive down to the law offices and talk to Collin. Besides Natalia, he was the one who worked the closest to her husband. On the way to Collin's, Bella turned a corner and ran into the woman she'd heard Emmett literally cry over for the past three months. Absently, she realized she hadn't seen Emmett in days. "Rose...hi."

"Bells!" Rosalie surprised her with a hug.

"Babies, Rose, squishing babies!"

"Oh, God, sorry! How are you?"

"I'm doing okay. Mr. Workaholic is driving me a little nuts but other than that, things are great."

"That's good. Um...I have to go but I want you to know that I've been helping Collin and I'll be there on Monday. We're going to kick ass."

Bella smiled and waved as Rose headed in the opposite direction. That's when Bella almost fell over. If a hug from Rosalie was a shocker, this was enough to make her go into labor. Emmett Cullen appeared in the doorway as Rose walked into her office. Not only did he appear, he grabbed his ex-wife by the waist and pulled her in for a tight hug before Rose reached back and closed the door. "Holy shit," Bella whispered to herself.

"Bella, hey!" Bella spun around to see Collin waving her over. "How are you? Is everything alright?"

"Huh," Bella asked, confused, still trying to process what she'd just seen, "Oh, sorry Collin. I actually have a question."

"What's up?" he asked as they headed towards the other end of the hall.

"Edward. I'm getting kind of irritated with him working all these damn hours. Do you think it's really about the case or is something else going on?"

"I wasn't going to say anything to you, ya know 'don't stress the client before court' but yeah...Bells, I'm worried about him. I've told him that, too. Natalia's told him. Rose has told him. I mean, it's not normal for a lawyer to have that many cases and Trenton has even taken him off two because he simply can't handle that much at once. _Edward is still asking for more! _We've all pretty much given up. He's a damn good lawyer, Bella but he's killing himself right now. I found him sleeping on the floor of his office a couple days ago."

"Collin, why doesn't he just come home?"

"I don't know..."

"Can I ask you another question? You don't have to answer..."

"What's the question?" Collin asked without hesitation. _Typical lawyer._

Bella lowered her voice, "Is anything, other than business, going on between Edward and Natalia?"

Collin laughed, "No. I'll be honest, when she first got hired here, she wanted nothing more than your husband. He had Rose talk to her. I remember giving him a rough time about it. Bella, the girl's hot. Your man wanted nothing to do with her...in that way. She's a kick ass secretary from what I hear. She's more of an assistant. Really, you have nothing to worry about...besides there's some kid Edward is friends with who she doesn't shut up about. I think she found someone else to set her sights on."

"Alright, thanks, Collin. I'll...um...I'll see you Monday morning."

"Hey, baby, what are you doing here?" Edward asked from his desk where he was crouched over a pile of papers and writing on a big yellow tablet like he was crazy.

"I wanted to talk to Collin about things..."

"Is something wrong? Did you find him? What's wrong?" Edward's full attention was now on her.

"No...I'm fine. I did find him and I'm okay."

"What did you need him for?"

"Honestly, it was about you."

"Me?"

"Yes. You. Edward Anthony Cullen, I'm staging an intervention right now and I could easily go gather up three other people," _well four if you include Emmett_, "or the two of us could just talk."

"About what?"

"Edward, you have been working non-stop for months. Please just take a break and relax with me."

"I can't. The Parker case and your case are both happening soon and..."

"No. No more work talk like this. I've heard from different people that you are taking cases that you have no more time for. I want to know why," she said firmly, crossing her arms and trying to look menacing.

"Bella, I don't want to do this right now..."

Walking back towards the door, Bella shut it and decided she was going to get this out of him one way or another. "Are you fucking Natalia? Is that what this is about?"

"What? Of course not! She's a coworker. That's it!" Bella felt bad...his eyes were huge and panic was clear on his face.

"Calm down...I know it's not that. Edward, there's _some_ reason you don't want to come home. There _has_ to be."

"Nope. Just busy," he said without flinching.

"Edward!"

Trying a different approach she went to stand in front of him and took his hand. She placed it on her stomach and laughed as the babies kicked as if on cue. "Edward Cullen, your babies and I need you. They're getting big. I'm probably eventually going to end up on bed rest and I'll need you. I'm scared."

She watched him take a deep breath and push his chair back. "I'm...I can't...what if I can't do this?"

"Do what?" Bella asked, starting to worry.

He looked at her for a long moment before rubbing his face with his palms and saying, "What if something happens to them? Bella, I have no clue what I'm doing. I love them both already but I am terrified that something bad could happen. What if one's sick? What if they're both sick? What if they need something and I don't know what to get for them? What if..."

"Honey, shut up, no more what if's. Is that what all of this is about?" Bella motioned to his cluttered desk. Edward just looked away and she had her answer. "Alright, let's go."

"It's not time to leave yet..."

"We're going to visit Trenton."

Once they were in the owner's office, Bella walked right up to his desk. "Good morning, Mr. Hale."

"Hello, Bella. It's nice to see you."

"I need to ask something and if it's not okay, then we can just pretend I never mentioned it."

"Okay..."

"My husband here, has bitten off way more than he can chew. I was wondering if there was a way to help him lighten his case load a little. As you can see, I'm rather pregnant and I really need him at home a little more than he has been. I don't know if you're aware of this but he's been working close to sixty hours a week. Can you help us out at all?"

Trenton looked from her to Edward, "Edward, what do you think? Are you going to give up some cases?"

"I, ugh, yeah," he said in a defeated tone.

"It's done then. I'll have Natalia send me your files and distribute some of them to a couple others. I'll need you on some higher priority cases and you can keep the ones you feel you can handle."

"Just like that?" Bella wondered, surprised that it had been that easy.

"Bella, I've been asking him to lighten his case load for weeks now. He was handling it so I didn't do anything to really stop him. Your husband is a good lawyer. Edward, I wanted to tell you that the board has seen the work you've been doing...and the time you've been putting in. We were going to wait to tell you but since you're both here, we've agreed to give you the two regular weeks of paternity leave and we're going to award you two more. Between Bella's hearing and twins, you are going to need some time off. All I ask is you wrap cases up before. I'm going to try to give away the ones where you would be expected in court in a couple months."

"Really? Four weeks?"

"Yeah. You're way too much like my daughter. Total workaholics. Don't forget your family." Bella gulped as she though about Rosalie. _Let's just hope they aren't too much like each other._

When they arrived at the doctors office, Bella sat down carefully and cringed a little. "What's wrong? Are you okay?" Edward asked immediately.

"You seriously need to stop freaking out like this..."

A burst of cool air filled the room as the door opened. Bella turned towards the front and about gasped. Instead, she tuned towards her husband and whispered, "Edward, holy shit, look who just walked in!"

She watched as he scanned the room and shortly after his eyes got huge. They both looked at each other, then back over at the surprising couple. The former Rosalie Cullen was now filling out paper work in a gynecologist office, alongside Tyler Crowley. "No way. No fucking way!" Edward whispered back to her.

"That's who she's been seeing? He's Emmett's best friend!"

"What the hell is she thinking? I wonder if Em knows?"

"I..." Bella thought back to earlier that morning. "Edward, Emmett was in her office this morning, they were hugging—like a lot."

"So she's cheating on him again?" Edward asked, sounding annoyed.

"No. I think now Emmett_ is _the other man. Have you spoken to him lately?"

"No. Not for a few days actually..."

"Bella Cullen?" A nurse asked, holding the door open for them. Rosalie's head shot up and looked straight at Bella. It was too late for either girl to look away. They stayed that way until Edward gently took Bella's arm and lead her back to the exam room. _What the hell is going on?_

"Alright, Bella, any questions, concerns?" The doctor asked, scribbling away on a chart.

"Well, I've been having a lot of back pain and when the babies kick it's painful."

"Both of those aren't uncommon but we'll check everything out. We estimate that you are about twenty-four to twenty-five weeks along. Why don't we take a look at the little ones and then we'll go over everything."

"Sounds good," Bella said, lying back as Edward helped her pull her shirt over her belly. Once again, they waited anxiously to get a view of the monitor.

"Well, everything appears to be fine. Do you want to know their sex?"

"Yes," Edward and Bella answered at the same time.

"Well, mom and dad, here they are. Your, from what I can tell, very healthy baby boys."

"They're both boys?" Edward spoke for the first time since they'd come into the room.

"They are."

"Trevor and William," Edward stated in an amazed voice as he bent down and kissed his wife's forehead.

Bella looked up at him and began to cry. For the first time in months, her husband didn't have that scared, flustered look she'd come to know as normal. He was smiling, wider than she'd seen since the last time she was pregnant. For the first time in over a year, she was truly happy.

**Aw...two little boys. :) I can't promise an update on a certain day but I can say it won't be more than a week or anything crazy like that, just a couple days. Don't forget about me! Until next time, LP xo**


	35. Chapter 35

**Hope everyone had a fun St. Patrick's Day! **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: Bella looked up at him and began to cry. For the first time in months, her husband didn't have that scared, flustered look she'd come to know as normal. He was smiling, wider than she'd seen since the last time she was pregnant. For the first time in over a year, she was truly happy.**

Chapter 35

"Trevor and William, those are strong names," the doctor smiled.

"Just like their father. So, they're healthy? Everything's great?" Edward hadn't said anything and was still in awe. This was really, really, really going to happen.

"Yes. We'll do a few tests and check you over but I think you're alright. We do need to talk about the pain and what it could mean for you in a few weeks. Bella, let's be honest, you're tiny. The chances of you carrying the boys to full term is slim but it's not impossible."

"They'll be okay though," Bella asked it as if she was trying to convince herself. Edward was worried about her. She seemed to be getting anxious.

"I'm not going to lie to you. Preterm labor is..."

Edward watched as Bella sucked in a deep breath and looked away. "Doc, she's still really sensitive about what happened during the previous pregnancy."

"I'm sorry but you both have to know the risks. It's completely normal for her to be in pain once in awhile when they kick. Like I said, she's small. The issue is a lot of times with twins when one's awake, so is the other. When one is kicking so is the other. You'll see when they're born that they'll even entertain each other. It's just something your wife is going to have to deal with throughout the pregnancy.

"Bella, all I can say is, you'll know when something is wrong. Right now, I'm going to say that things look normal and what your describing is normal. If you have any discomfort that you know isn't right, come in immediately. No heavy lifting. I want to see you again in three weeks but let's get these tests over with and you can be on your way."

"Okay, this is the exact same crib and it matches the changing table and the other crib at the house. Next is another car seat," Edward said, walking through an overpriced department store with Bella at his side. She'd been kind of quiet since the doctor had brought up preterm labor. "Are you okay, angel?"

"Yeah. Can we do mint green for the car seats? Or maybe brown? I don't want everything to be blue."

"That's fine."

As he began to pack the cart with a sheet set identical to the one already in the nursery, Bella asked, "So what do you think we should do about Emmett? I mean, should we tell him? Are they even back together?"

"I really don't know. I think tomorrow night we should stop by and see him. I'm a little worried that we haven't heard from him for this long."

"I'm scared."

"About Emmett?" Edward asked, confused.

"No. I'm glad you're here with me today but is it going to last?" She looked right at him as she said it.

"You heard Trenton. I get a month of leave."

"Yeah. A month. That's it. I'm really scared that you're going to make me do this on my own. I don't want to do this on my own."

"Bella, I swear to you," he stopped walking and turned towards her, "I'm not going anywhere. Once yours and about three other cases are over, I'll be done. I'll tell Trenton that I can't pull the overtime like I have been. We'll work it out. If you ever feel overwhelmed tell me and if I can't be there, you know my mom will be. You're going to do fine."

"I think we've been given a second chance," Bella said with a small smile.

"What do you mean?"

"Two babies. We're being give another chance with the baby we lost. Edward, I can't let it happen again..."

"_We _won't let it happen. Don't let yourself stress over this. Come on, let's get these things ordered at the service desk and then get you into a nice warm bath."

"Amen to that."

As they pulled into their usual parking place Bella realized that some shiny, dark silver vehicle was parked on her side of the driveway. "Who's car is that? We left my car at the firm."

He got out of the Vanquish and walked around to open her door. "No we didn't."

"Yes, we did," said Bella, looking at him like he was nuts.

She watched him go around to the trunk and pull out the two car seats before walking over to the strange silver vehicle. "I think the seats will fit in there. I made sure it was a four door."

"What...you..."

Unlocking the doors with the button on his keyring, Edward pulled the back door open and set them inside. "I figured it would be plenty of room..."

"Edward..."

"You know, the trunk is pretty spacious too and we can even fit someone between the two car seats if we ever have anyone else with us, they can sit there..."

"You bought a car?" Bella asked, jaw dropping to the ground.

"I bought _you_ a car. Bell's we've had the old Volvo since I was in high school. It's about time you have a new car. I don't want my children to be driven around in the old one. This one is safe."

"Edward, it was still a Volvo. What's safer than a Volvo?"

"A _new_ Volvo," Edward replied with a smirk.

"I...I don't know what to say."

"Say thank you and let's go take a bath."

"I just think it's a bit much. This is an expensive vehicle and I'm sure we would have been fine..."

"I know you don't like change. That's why I didn't tell you about it. You'll get used to this one and be fine. Just give it a little time, alright?"

"Fine," Bella sighed before giving him a hug and a quick kiss. "It's a really nice vehicle and I love it. I just think we should give the old one to someone who needs it."

"I already have someone in mind but it's a surprise for another day. You like it though?"

"I love it. Now, come on, I really want a bath. We can take the car for a spin later. Plus, we have tons of people to call and tell we're having two boys. My mom's going to scream, she wanted a granddaughter. Dad on the other hand, will be jumping up and down."

The next day, after spreading the word around the office about his boys, Edward had his last briefing about Bella's case. They were to meet at the courthouse by nine thirty on Monday morning. Collin and Bella would be sitting at the front. Edward, Rose, and Trenton would be right behind them. Bella had sworn up and down to Collin that she'd be okay sitting that close to Mike, who would be in the front on the other side. They decided to put Bella's testimony first. That way, she could leave if necessary.

They were going to go right down the line after that. Esme would be first, Tanya would be second, and Kathy would be last. Between Tanya and Mike, Bella probably wouldn't be able to stay for the whole thing. He planned to stay. Emmett and Jasper were both going to be there so that they could leave with Bella if she needed to go. About to leave for the appointment he had at the courthouse, he heard his phone ring and picked it up.

"Edward. Hey. It's Jake."

"Hey, man. How are you doing?"

"Good. Great, actually. Edward, they're letting me come home. I've been sober since the night we decided to do all of this."

"When do you leave there?"

"A week from today. Next Friday. I wanted to tell you so that maybe you could start, like, talking to Bella and stuff..."

"Jacob, I told you I'd keep my end of the deal and I will but let me start talking to her and I'll see if she will see you. I won't tell her the whole story because I think if I just say I'm willing to let you see her she'll agree. She still cares about you. The only problem is, and listen carefully, she is under a lot of stress right now. Between being pregnant with the twins and this damn Mike situation, she's a _little_ depressed and _a lot_ anxious. Please, whatever you do, try to not upset her."

"I wouldn't try to upset her, Edward."

"Remember that. I have to get going but I have a quick question for you. What do you think of Natalia?"

There was silence on the phone for a few moments before Jacob finally spoke, "I really like her. She's amazing and smart and so damn hot...she's like the perfect package."

"You realize she has a son? A little boy?"

"I know."

"You realize you'll have to get along with him, right?"

"I get it. I really, really, really, really care about her. I couldn't have done all of this without her. Did she tell you she calls every night? She's even come to visit on days that weren't mandatory."

"Well, just don't hurt her, alright? She is a really great person and she's a good mom. Alex is her whole world. Oh, and speaking of kids, Bella and I are having boys."

"No way! Charlie probably danced around the living room...him and Billy both."

"I heard his 'yes' that he yelled from across the room while Bella was talking to him on the phone. We'll be down in Forks a lot I have a feeling."

"Bells loves it there. I think she'll always consider Forks home. You'll talk to her, right? You'll tell her I want to see her?"

"Yes. I have to go but congratulations. Remember, you're going to be around two women who I care a lot about. Please don't hurt them."

Edward got home around five-thirty and could here Livy crying from outside. Heading in, he found Bella in the kitchen, attempting to cook dinner. Poor Livy had drool all over the front of her shirt and Bella was trying to calm her down and stir the pasta she had in a big pot. Edward took Livy from her bouncy chair and started to rock her. "Hey, angel," he said to Bella before giving her a kiss on the cheek. "How are my two favorite girls?"

"Both tired and both sore," Bella said, pulling a teething ring out of their freezer.

"Where'd that come from?"

"Alice sent it. It just now froze, though. Just give it to her."

"Alright, alright. I'll take Miss Happy Pants here and finish supper. Why don't you go lie down for a little bit, or at least sit and relax. Has she been like this all day?"

"Oh, yeah. Her teeth are cutting and Alice said there are few things that can make her happy. She and Jazz haven't gotten a full night's sleep in two weeks."

"I guess we're going to have this coming at us both ways. We're both going to have to get up with them at night."

"Of course. If they're anything like their father, they won't want to sleep, either."

"Well, go rest. I know you're trying to help Ally but you shouldn't be on your feet all day. Go sit down and I'll yell when supper is ready."

As soon as he got the baby to calm down, Edward finished dinner and called his brother. At first, it just rang but after he hung up and tried again Emmett answered. "What's up, man?"

"Nothing important."

"Mind if Bella and I come visit? We have some news to share with you."

"I don't mind at all."

"Alright, and we're bringing dinner and a Livy. We're trying to give Ally and Jasper a break."

"I see. Yeah, like I'm going to turn down dinner," Emmett said with a laugh.

"Let me get Bella up and Olivia ready and we'll be over."

Bella looked around the large house and couldn't believe the shape it was in. Rosalie kept things spotless. Never was there even a spare glass on the coffee table or a dish in the sink. Poor Emmett had dishes piled up, pizza boxes stacked on the table, the bathroom had clothes piled on the floor and she was pretty sure the place hadn't been dusted in months. "I know it looks terrible, guys. It's warm enough that we could eat out on the balcony. I haven't been out there since...ya know...to mess it up."

Bella looked at Edward, who raised an eyebrow, so she agreed, "Let me just put another blanket on Livy and we'll follow you out."

Emmett carried the spaghetti that Edward brought while Edward brought Olivia out along with her bouncy seat. They talked about the case and Emmett's latest work project until they were finished eating and Emmett picked up Olivia, "I missed you little girl. Yes I did!" he cooed at the pink bundle that looked even tinier in her uncles big arms than she actually was.

"Well, Em, we have some news to tell you," Edward began, smiling briefly at Bella before looking back at him, "we're having two little boys."

"Boys! Sweet! They're going to be so fun! Do you remember how we were when we were little?"

"Yeah, we were real fun in mom and dad's opinion," Edward said sarcastically.

"We were best friends, though. I remember you sneaking out of preschool to come up to the my classroom and find me because you were scared. Everyone was looking for you."

"Yeah, well, I saved your ass how many times after that? You may have been bigger than me but I could talk us out of any trouble we got into."

"Watch the language, husband," Bella said with a smile before heading in to heat her niece a bottle. When she came back out it was obvious that they were still exchanging childhood stories. Running to the bathroom real quick, she washed her hands and ran into Emmett as she was coming out. "Hey, what's going on?"

"You saw me at the office today didn't you?"

"Um...I...maybe a little," Bella said, confused about where this was going.

"Please don't say anything to anyone."

"Emmett what's going on with you two? Are you together? Are you not together? Do you know who she was sleeping with?"

"I don't know and yes I know who it was." Bella gave him a look to say 'keep going'. "She slept with Ben..."

"Angela's Ben? Are you freaking kidding me?"

"No. She told me everything. I guess Ben was out one night that Rosalie went out with Carmen and Kate. After that, she actually snuck out to see him...twice. Both times it was after we fought about the baby..."

"Is she still seeing him?"

"No. According to her it only happened the two times and I wanted to here it from Ben so I showed up at his door one day. Talk about scared shitless...anyway, he told me the exact same thing she did. He and Angela are trying to work things out. I would really like to work things out with Rose but she's hesitating big time. The sex is amazing though..."

"Wait. Hold the hell on! You're still sleeping together?"

"Not so much sleeping...just, ya know..._sleeping_ together. I mean it's like we're starting over and everything's new again. We've done it at the office, behind Chrome..."

"Stop. I don't want to know. Please, stop. Wait, you did it in an alley behind a bar?" Bella asked, suddenly curious.

"Who did it behind a bar?" Edward asked walking up with Livy.

Emmett turned to his brother with a strange look, like he was trying to decide what to say, "Rose and I."

"Em, I really don't think Bella wants to hear...holy shit! You slept with Rose!"

"Language!" Bella scolded him again.

"Emmett, I don't think you should be seeing her again. She's going to hurt you."

"Edward..."

"No. Listen to me! Bella take the baby. Okay, Rosalie was at the doctors today...man, she was with Ty," Edward said, breaking the news as gently as possible.

"I know."

"You know? What do you mean you know? It was an OBGYN, Em. Pregnant women go there! They don't usually bring a guy if that's not the case, either."

"Edward..." Emmett was trying to stay calm as Bella watched the exchange between the two brothers.

"I mean she's with Tyler? Really? You're okay with this? He's your best friend!"

"It's not Tyler's!" Emmett finally yelled out.

"So she is pregnant?" Edward ask, confused.

"Yes. I found out today."

"So why is she _with_ Tyler? I mean, is she seeing someone else on top of sleeping with you and being pregnant with someone else's..." Bella had never seen Edward this upset over something like this before—she had to bite back laughter.

"It's mine, Edward. It's mine!" Emmett spat out. That caught Bella's attention and she immediately stopped grinning.

"Holy shit!"

"Language!" Bella said, shifting Olivia to her other arm, "Emmett, no offense, but how do you _know_ this is _your_ baby?"

"She only slept with Ben in the time we were still together. She and I had sex...soon...after the divorce. Like, that day."

"Emmett..." Edward sighed, shaking his head, "the day of the divorce? Really? Why did you two even go through with it?"

"She still wanted it. I don't even know if she still does or not."

"You're having a child!" Bella exclaimed.

"That doesn't mean she still wants to be with me."

"I can't believe you are so okay with all of this. I would be freaking the fuck out."

Bella smacked him on the arm but gave up on the language lesson. "What Edward means to say is most guys would be rather upset if this happened to them. How did she even get pregnant? She's the one who didn't want a baby!"

"Antibiotics. They messed with her birth control."

"So, you know it's yours but you don't know if the two of you will ever get back together?"

"That's pretty much the moral of the story."

"I don't understand why she wouldn't tell me she slept with Ben. In fact, she went to pretty good lengths for me not to find out. Sure, I was busy but I'm usually pretty much kept up on the office gossip. Even Natalia didn't find out until right before the case...oh my, God."

Emmett and Bella both looked at him like he was nuts. "Care to explain what's happening in that head of yours, babe?"

"Rose. She was keeping this from me for a reason."

"Why? You don't even know Ben..."

"Bella, Mike and Ben are close. I think he was trying to get info out of Rosalie about the case. When are we dropping off Livy?"

"In about an hour but Alice and I are going to shop for strollers. Why?"

"Em, call Rosalie and tell her to meet us at eight. I don't care where. We need to talk to her before Monday."

Edward sipped his beer while Emmett was basically playing phone tag back and forth with Rosalie. Though she was pregnant, she was still out at some bar across the street for Carmen's birthday. Edward had told him not to tell her he would be there, worried she wouldn't come if she knew. "Alright," said Emmett, setting his phone down on the bar, "she's on her way over now."

About ten minutes later, Rose finally made her entrance...as well as Carmen and Tanya. Before the girls got to them, Edward shot Emmett a look. "Just fucking awesome, man."

"You didn't want me to tell her you're here. This is all you, Edward. Besides, Tanya looks as surprised to see you as you are to see her. I'm sure it will be fine."

"Hey, guys," Rosalie said shyly when she saw Edward.

"He knows, Rosalie. So does Bells," Emmett said, getting up and hugging her.

Tanya and Carmen had gone straight to the bar, and from what Edward could see, were buying a shaker of shots. The girls made their way back over. "Hey, Eddie!" Tanya slurred as Edward was asking Rose to come outside with them so they could talk. He ignored Tanya and guided Rose towards the door. Once outside, he turned toward her. Rose began to blurt everything out.

"Please don't hate me! I swear I just didn't want you to have to deal with this on top of everything. I just wanted you to take care of Bells. Ben...he got me drunk...the first time. I swear to God he planned it. The second time, I was fighting with Em. I got angry. I honestly thought that Ben cared about me. So, we slept together and then things got kind of strange. He started asking questions about the case. He knew I was working on it. It all clicked then. Ben was just using me to get information."

"Did you give it to him, Rose?"

"No. Edward, if Mike walks, I think he might come after me. I don't know. Maybe I'm being paranoid..."

"I heard you're pregnant."

"Yeah. I am."

"Rose, I guess I can slightly understand where you're coming from but why did you do it? Why did you cheat on him?"

In all the years he'd been around Rosalie, he couldn't even remember the times he'd seen her cry. He and Tyler use to jokingly call her the ice queen because nothing seemed to phase her. Now, in a back alley of a rundown bar, Rosalie Hale had tears running down her cheeks. "I was so, so fucking stupid. I love him. I've always loved him. I don't know what to do to make this better. I need him."

Reaching out, he hugged her. They stayed like that for a few moments before he pulled away and said, "Rose, I'm going to say this because he's my brother and I have to. He might seem like a kid sometimes. He might seem like he doesn't even know how to tie his damn shoes. He might forget things. He might not seem mature. He also really, really cares about people. If you're loved once by Emmett, you always will be. He's a protector. He always has been. I know for a fact that Em wants to make this work again with you. He's willing to look past what happened. Rose, for the sake of my niece or nephew, please at least give it another shot. Emmett loves you more than anything in the world."

"I want to but I'm not ready yet. I swear I didn't say anything to Ben. I wouldn't break that confidentiality. You know that."

"I just had to be sure. Let's go back inside. I need to get home."

To Edward's surprise, Jasper was sitting at the table with Emmett. "Hey, man, your wife ended up going home with three strollers tonight. One is a double and two singles—I guess so you can both have one in case you need to split the babies up for something."

"She didn't lift them, did she? I thought they were just going to order them!"

"They called me and I drove her home. I took them into the house and told her to leave them in the nursery until you got home. She was looking pretty rough when I left."

Edward immediately headed to a more quiet area and pulled out his phone to call her, "Hey. I'm leaving here soon. Just checking on you. Call me back."

From behind him, he heard Tanya snort, "She actually makes you call and check in. How pathetic."

"I chose to call and check on her. She's six months pregnant with twins...God, why am I even trying to justify this?"

"Because you're whipped and you know it. She's so ridiculous. One night out and you have to rush home to see her," her words were slurred as she pointed at Edward to emphasize each word.

"Tanya, stop."

"No. She stole you. You were mine and the bitch fucking stole you!" Edward was taken aback by her outburst.

What surprised him more was that she made her way towards him. When she was close enough to touch him, he stepped back away from her. "Tanya..."

"Oh, come on. I won't tell her," Tanya said, reaching out and touching his arm.

Edward knew what he needed to do, once and for all. He was going to be the bad guy. He was going to hurt her, the one thing he hadn't wanted to do. There was too much at stake with his wife to risk Tanya hurting her worse than what she had—him hurting her worse than what he had. The problem was he couldn't do it now. She was testifying for him on Monday. Taking a deep breath, he just said, "Yeah, well I would."

He could feel her shooting daggers into his back as he walked away, the second the case was over, he would do the deed. Heading back over to the table, he yelled over the music. "I've got to get home. Bella didn't answer and I'm worried. Oh, and Carmen make sure someone drives your sister home, and while your at it, tell her to back the fuck off."

**There might be a few more chapters than anticipated. I will try to let you know when the end is coming up. Since I do this day by day it's kind of hard to tell when things are going to actually come to a certain point. Until next time, LP xoxoxoxo**


	36. Chapter 36

**First and foremost, I want to sincerely apologize for the lateness. I NEVER take this long to publish a chapter BUT I have been receiving error messages instead of being able to upload. I have no idea and had sent about 300 emails to fanfiction support over these past couple weeks. I did a happy dance tonight when I tried and it worked :) **

**I've never done this before but I would like to dedicate this chapter to a certain reviewer who never got her chance at justice. You know who you are. This one's for you. **

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: He could feel her shooting daggers into his back as he walked away, the second the case was over, he would do the deed. Heading back over to the table, he yelled over the music. "I've got to get home. Bella didn't answer and I'm worried. Oh, and Carmen make sure someone drives your sister home, and while your at it, tell her to back the fuck off."**

**Chapter 36**

Edward found his wife curled into a ball on their bed. She was facing away from him and he could tell from across the room that she was tense. "Bella? Baby, what's wrong?" _Please don't let anything happen to them._

"They're awake and it hurts."

"Come here," he said, wrapping his arms around her as he laid down. The second his hand touched her stomach he could feel them moving. "Wow. Edward Jr. was never this active."

"I guess there's just less room with the two of them. I don't know how the heck I'm going to do this for the next three months. It's going to get worse."

"I know. Jasper said you weren't looking too great when he left."

"I'm just really tired but there's no way I can sleep like this right now."

"Bella, I really think you shouldn't take Livy on by yourself again until after the twins come. I just think you are wearing yourself out. Do you think we should call the hospital? Is it really bad?"

"It's bad but I don't want to call. I want to stay home and they aren't going to tell me anything except that they're active. Which we know. Boys will be boys."

"Alright, I have an idea. Come downstairs."

He helped her up and they headed to the entertainment room's chaise lounge. After he propped her up with pillows and a blanket, Edward knelt down and pulled her shirt up. He kissed her belly and ran his hands over it. "Boys, momma needs to sleep. Why don't we take it easy tonight." His soothing words, to her surprise, seemed to be calming her sons down. After a little while of gently talking to them, Edward walked over to the piano and sat down. The beautiful notes she heard him playing the night Jasper and Alice dropped Livy off months ago filled the room.

She put her head back and realized that the twins were no longer moving, just little twitches here and there—which she loved because she knew they were okay. Edward had managed to calm both of them down. Closing her eyes, she realized she would have to put her full appreciation aside until tomorrow, when she was awake enough to speak.

"I hate them," Bella said to her husband as they made their way to the court house Monday morning.

"I know but you can't hide behind long sleeves forever, baby."

"Well, I can't hide the ones on my face _ever_. People look at me and they see my scars, Edward. I know what they're thinking. They want to know what happened to 'the poor girl'. Now, I have to sit in front of a room full of people and actually point them out."

"Bella, you are beautiful. Scars or no scars. Whether it's from the glass or the stitches, it's no one's damn business when it comes to how you got them. People are curious. That's all. People always looked at you. You've always been beautiful. Try not to think about them. Besides, everyone here will know what they're from."

Bella sighed but didn't bother to argue. Playing with the button on her short-sleeved blazer, she looked down at her torn up arm. When all the bruising had finally gone away and the stitches were taken out, Bella realized she would have reminders of that night for the rest of her life. Everyday when she looked in the mirror they would be there. She could hear her sons already. "Mommy, why do you have those marks?"

Edward had tried everything he could to help her. They'd invested in every cream known to man...even went to a plastic surgeon, which Bella wanted to run out of as soon as the doctor began to explain the procedures. She was stuck with them. "Dammit!" She heard her husband mutter. Looking up from her nasty reminders, she saw a huge group of people lining the courthouse stairs, cameras ready.

"Is there another way in?"

"No. The metal detectors are on this side and we have to go through them. We really don't have a choice. When we get out, just stay beside me and don't say anything to anyone. You'll be alright."

As soon as they found a spot to park, Edward came around and opened her door. Taking her arm, right where the marks were—she knew he was trying to help her cover some of them up—they headed inside. Flashbulbs went off and she began to feel dizzy. "Isabella, how far along are you? Who's the father? Are you prepared to face Mr. Newton. Is your husband representing you?" The list went on and on. Her head was spinning. Thankfully, they made it to the door just in time for her to collapse on a bench.

"We've got to keep moving. Let's just get through the detectors and into the private room down the hall. Come on. Please, Bella," Edward pleaded with her, "They can still get pictures from here. Come on."

Slowly, she stood up and leaned into him. Somehow she made it through the detectors and soon found herself in a little room with deep red carpet and a cherry wood table with matching chairs. Rosalie, Collin, Tanya, and Esme were already waiting. Letting Edward lead her to a chair, she sat down and he pushed gently so her head was down as close to her knees as she could get without hurting the twins. "Deep breaths. You're okay."

"Is she alright?" Tanya asked like she was annoyed with her.

"Edward, can I talk to you in the hallway for a minute?" Collin asked, gesturing towards the door.

"I...yeah..." he finally stood up and followed him, reluctant to leave his wife.

Bella felt Esme begin to rub her back and kept breathing heavily. Rosalie got her some water. Before the guys came back in, Bella was able to speak again. Esme asked her little questions to try to take her mind off of things. When they got to the topic of the twins, Tanya got up and left the room. Which was more than fine with Bella.

"Hey, they're ready for us," Collin said, coming through the door as Edward came to Bella's side.

"Feeling better?"

"Much," Bella smiled at her husband before standing up slowly.

Bella wanted nothing more than the world to just open up and swallow her whole. Before the judge was even on the stand, they brought Mike in. He saw her and she immediately blanched. Feeling dumb, she tried to recover but he sent her a shit eating grin that made her want to vomit. With shaking hands, she took the stand once the judge was settled in and everyone was seated.

"Mrs. Cullen? Can you tell us what happened that night?" Collin began.

Bella went through the whole story, remembering all the tricks Collin and Edward had coached her with. Never say 'I don't remember'. Never second guess yourself when telling the story. Never let Mike intimidate you—Edward reminded her that he'd have to get through armed guards and Edward himself before he could get to her. Be sure to show the scars. The list went on and on. Bella did wonderfully, or at least she thought she did, she made it through with only three tissues worth of tears.

"Bella, you mentioned that you began to scream for your husband when you realized you wouldn't be able to save yourself. You mentioned he was nowhere nearby, that it was instinct. Does Mr. Cullen still protect you? Has he always?"

"Yeah. He's more worried about me than himself half the time."

"How did you feel when you found out he was seeing Miss Denali?"

Bella had been prepped for this question, "I was blaming myself. When we lost our son, we began to drift in separate directions. I had already asked for a divorce when it happened. There was no one to blame but me."

"It's pretty evident that you're expecting. For the record, to the best of your knowledge, who is the father?"

"Edward."

"Mr. Cullen?"

"Yes."

"No further questions."

Mike's lawyer stood up next. That's when things got nasty. "So your husband was sleeping with Miss Denali and you felt no contempt towards him?"

"I was asking him for a divorce at the time. He was able to do what he wanted."

"As long as you had his money?"

"No. Never. I don't care about the money. I wouldn't have wanted a penny."

"Is it true that you grew up without a lot of money? That your hometown is one of the poorer regions in Washington?"

"Money has nothing to do with this!"

"Answer the question, Mrs. Cullen."

"No. I wouldn't say we were poor. The reservation didn't have a lot of money but we weren't living on the reservation! My father is the police chief! My mother is married to a minor league baseball player. We weren't poor!"

"A little defensive, aren't we?"

"Objection!" Collin called out.

"Next question, counselor," the judge said gruffly.

"Mrs. Cullen, is it safe to say that you may have been a little suggestive in your decision to invite Mr. Newton into your home? At night? After a night of drinking when you knew no one else would be home?"

"I was trying to help a friend. She was sick and needed to get home. He and I were too drunk to drive. I asked if he wanted to stay but said he had to sleep on the couch."

"He?"

Bella gulped and said quietly, "Mike."

"Mr. Newton?"

"Yes!" Bella said, getting annoyed. "I wasn't being suggestive at all. I have scars from what he did to me! He beat me!"

"Is that not something that you enjoy? We found BDSM paraphernalia in you and your husband's bedroom closet. This isn't a matter of a little playfulness getting out of hand?"

Bella's entire face was turning red. Unable to meet the eyes of her brother-in-laws, she said, "No. It isn't. He raped me." Her entire body was beginning to shake and it felt like her chest was being pushed in. Her hand went instinctively to the twins, who were shifting around—like they knew something was wrong. She prayed for the panic to pass. It didn't.

Mike chose that minute to shift in his chair to look at Edward and the dam broke. Bella went into full panic mode and began trying to take deep breaths. They were more rapid then deep and she began to get dizzy. Holding onto the stand as if to ground herself, she could hear the lawyer asking her something. Finally, Collin's voice came through, too. Then the judge's. Before she knew what was happening, Collin was stepping up and taking her arm to help her down, he led her to her husband, and soon after, they were out of the court room and back in the small, red room. Kathy was right beside her and Edward, they were both talking quietly to her. "Bella, you've gotta keep breathing. Just put you head down and try to relax. The boys need you to relax."

Bella began to sob when she heard the concerned voice of her husband, "I should take her to the hospital..."

"Edward, the hospital isn't going to do anything for her. It's not medical. It's emotional. Give her time."

They sat in silence for awhile, letting Bella cry herself out until Collin came in. "They want to get started again. Miller is done with questions for her. The judge wants to bring in your mom and get things going. I'm going to head back in."

"Collin...I'm so sorry. I ruined everything..." Bella said, sniffling.

"Don't worry about it, honey. You did great. Now you can go home and relax. Do you want me to send your brother for her, Edward?"

"No. I'm taking her myself..."

"I'm not leaving. I want to stay. I need to know Mike's not going to get away with this," Bella interrupted them.

"Bella, you need..."

"I need to go back in there and be there for your mom. It's scary up there," she added.

"If that's what you want then we have to get in there now," Collin said.

Bella stood up, not even looking at her husband or her counselor and followed Collin out.

Esme's testimony went well and Bella found herself able to relax a bit more. She and the boys were both much calmer by the time she was finished. Tanya was next and Bella knew it wasn't going to be pretty. To her surprise, Bella took note that Tanya had more clothes on in court than Bella had seen on her the entire time she'd known her. The youngest Denali sister wore a black, short-sleeved button up dress shirt with a high necked green shirt underneath. The skirt she wore was also black and the outfit was finished off with high black stilettos. _This bitch could make funeral garb look sexy._

"Miss Denali..."

"You can call me Tanya," Tanya said, resting her chin on the palm of her hands. Bella wanted to gag.

"Tanya," Collin said with a smile—he knew all about her. Even Collin wouldn't take on that batch of crazy. "Were you with Mr. Cullen on the night of the alleged assault?"

"Mmm," Tanya practically purred into the small microphone, looking directly at Bella, "it was amazing—like it always had been before Isabella came along—not something I would forget." That's when Bella knew, this was going to be even harder than having to be on the stand herself. Tanya had always been better at playing the game. Now, she was as pissed as ever. She was their chance of clearing Edward for good—and she fucking knew it. That didn't mean she wasn't going to mess with Bella the whole damn time.

"And he was with you the whole night until the next morning?"

"All night. I don't think_ either_ of us could forget that," she said, smiling this time...at Edward.

Bella was so focused on what Tanya was saying that she hadn't noticed Edward leaning towards her until he spoke, "Are you sure you can do this? They're going to show the video..." Bella had heard about the video caught by the security camera. She knew she'd see more than what she wanted. Collin had wanted her to see it before the trial so she was prepared but she'd refused. Now, she was wondering if she could do this.

She must have missed what was said because they were turning on the screen to present the piece of evidence that would show Edward Cullen was nowhere near the scene when it happened. At first, there was just a shot of the parking lot with already abandoned cars. A few seconds later, Tanya's vehicle would pull into a spot and two people would get out. Bella watched the real-life drama unfold on the screen. The beautiful blonde, her flawless tall dark and handsome lover, kissing as soon as they pulled in. For a moment, Bella wondered if they'd even make it out of the car.

Her stomach was churning and as much as she wasn't angry with him, she had to let go of her husband's hand. It was the same hand that worked its way to the middle of the blonde's thighs as she got out of the car and the sexy man leaned her against the hood. It went on with the heavy making out for awhile and the camera switched to a different view—obviously another camera placed on the outside of Tanya's townhouse.

Now, the man had the woman against the door as he kissed her neck and she worked her fingers through his hair. _Those should have been my fingers. _Soon, Bella could see the woman bringing her leg up and wrapping it around the man's waist as he lifted her up. Finally, to Bella's relief, the man took the keys from the woman and opened her door, carrying her inside.

The lights didn't come back on in the room but Collin spoke to the judge quietly. Bella finally got the courage to look up at her husband's lover and saw that Tanya was staring directly at her as she wore the biggest fucking Cheshire cat smile Bella had ever seen. Turning towards Edward, it was clear he was feeling uncomfortable. He wouldn't make eye contact with Bella...wouldn't even look at her. Collin addressed the room, "That was the last time Mr. Cullen was caught on camera until close to lunchtime the next day. We have video of him leaving but will show it at a later time."

He sat down and the judge asked Miller if he had any questions for Tanya but he just shook his head and replied, "No questions, your honor."

Even Bella knew this was a good thing. If the defense had nothing to add it was because they knew it was pointless to argue the points that were made. She should have been doing a dance around the place, instead, she just wanted to vomit. Seeing Edward with Tanya had been harder than she'd ever expected. The judge announced that they would wrap things up the next day with Kathy's testimony since it was becoming late. As soon as the announcement was made, Bella stood and walked straight to the back, not waiting for Edward.

Finding an unlocked, private room, Bella snuck inside and closed the door before letting the tears fall. It had all been laid out on the screen in color—of course it couldn't be a cheap black and white camera. Tanya and her flawless skin, her perfect hair, her sexy clothes, her c-cup boobs, and the sex appeal that just seemed to pour off of her...all on the tv for everyone to see. Bella looked down at herself. She was six months pregnant and looked about eight. Her boobs were know where near as perfect as Tanya's. Then she thought of the scars lining the whole half of her body. This is what her husband had to look at. Bella would never be in his league.

Edward looked around frantically for his wife. He tried to get her to watch the damn thing before the trial even started but Bella, being Bella, was as stubborn as a horse. Now, the place was crawling with reporters and he had no clue where she was. Just when he got his phone to call her, he saw Tanya and Carmen walking down the long corridor towards him. "That went well. I think they will definitely believe we were together that night."

She said it sweetly but Edward knew her words were laced with acid. He'd seen the way she'd looked at his wife from the stand and would never forget it. That just made what he had to do so much easier. "Why don't we go somewhere where we can talk? Jazz! Hey, why don't you come with Tanya and I? Emmett, I need you to go look for Bells."

Emmett left and he led Tanya, Jasper and Carmen towards the private room they'd met in that morning. He turned towards Tanya as soon as the door was closed. "Your involvement in this case is over. You need to stay the hell away from Bella and I both. Don't think I don't appreciate what you've done for me today but I can't hurt my wife any more than I already have. We're having twins. Two little boys. If you can't see that there is no future for us, that is really, really sad. We had some fun, Tan. That was all it ever was to me. Fun. You were a good lay...not the best...but not bad..."

He stopped, knowing he'd gone too far. In all honesty, he was ashamed of himself for what he did. He was ashamed that a roomful of people and his wife just witnessed what happened between Tanya and him. The truth was, he was taking it out on her and he knew it really wasn't fair. This wasn't him, even as a lawyer he'd never cut people down like this. He would possibly never know if apologizing would fix it because Tanya just shook her head, tears running down her face, as she turned and walked back out the door. Carmen shook her head as well and followed her out.

"Ouch, man," Jasper said, with a showy wince.

"I don't have time to justify this. I have to find Bella. Jazz, I have to get her home and settled down. Tell Alice I love her and give Livy a kiss for us. I'll see you tomorrow." Edward walked out of the room and bumped into Kathy. "I'm sorry! I didn't see you there. Have you seen Bella?"

"No. I want to talk to you real quick, though. It'll only take a second."

"Emmett, I'm not mad at him...I just need some time to think. I really, really just want to go home and take a nice, long bath."

"Well, let's find him and then he can take you. He was going to talk to Tanya..."

"What?" Bella asked, furiously looking around for him. She began to walk faster and saw him at he end of the hall talking to Kathy. She approached them, unable to decide if she wanted to bawl or just simply smack him. Seconds later, she decided to just yell at him when she heard Kathy speak. "...you haven't been coming! Edward, I haven't seen you in months! I'm pretty sure Bella still thinks you are coming..."

"What? Edward! You haven't been going?" Bella demanded, walking right up to them.

"Bella..."

"No. I'm not the only one with problems here, okay? You've been lying to me this whole damn time! How could you?"

"I had a lot..."

"No. Don't." Bella said, too angry to stand there and listen to him, "Emmett, I need you to take me home. Now."

Edward didn't come home that night until after midnight. Bella was curled up in the window with a book, just like when they were first married. "You look like hell," she said bluntly, looking up at him.

"I feel like it, too. What a coincidence."

"You're drunk."

"You're smart."

"Edward, just go to bed. I can't deal with this right now." Bella sat up slowly and set her book beside her. To her surprise, Edward came and sat on the couch a couple feet away.

"What if I said that Jacob wants to see you?"

"I'd say that you're still not seeing Tanya."

"I'm not talking about Tanya. Would you talk to Jacob if the opportunity presented itself?"

"I guess so..."

"Good. I'm going to bed."

Bella watched with a confused look as he made his way upstairs. She couldn't believe he'd come home drunk and bring up Jake. She reminded herself that she was exhausted and didn't have time to deal with this drama bullshit. Getting comfortable with a blanket, Bella curled up on the couch and fell into a deep, deep sleep.

All morning, neither of them had said a word to each other. Edward had woken her up and made breakfast but had yet to say anything about the night before. When they got to court, it was just as bad as the previous day and he'd helped her into the building again—it was the most contact they'd had since the day before. Court was short that day. Kathy was the last one to speak and they showed the ten second clip of him leaving Tanya's. The hardest part that day was when they showed pictures taken of her face, arms, and ribs the night she was brought into the hospital. The judge dismissed everyone until four o'clock later that day when the jury would make their decision. Edward led Bella out and they drove back home. Plopping down on the couch next to her, Edward took her hand. "I'm sorry, Bella. I never should have drank like that last night. I shouldn't have come home like that..."

"I'm sorry, too. It was really hard seeing you with her and I just over reacted about the counseling issue. I still wish you'd at least told me you'd quit going."

"I was just really caught up with work..."

"Where did you go?"

"When?"

"Natalia told me it was scheduled that you left for the appointments. Where did you go?"

"Oh," Edward looked down and answered, "Edward Jr.'s grave. It helps me clear my head, believe it or not."

"I haven't been there," Bella said, feeling ashamed.

"Since?" Edward asked, confused.

"We buried him," Bella answer with gravel in her voice.

"I...what?"

"I just haven't been able to do it. It's too real then. I never wanted to go by myself."

"I'm here now, Bella. You aren't having to do anything by yourself. Not anymore. Why don't we go together? We have a couple hours. Let's get some lunch and I'll drive us there."

"I don't know..."

"It'll be okay, baby. Let's go eat."

An hour later, they walked up to the white marble head stone with a lamb carved into the top. Bella fell to her knees in front of it as Edward stood back and gave her some space to grieve. "I miss you, my sweet little boy. Momma loves you. Why was he taken from us? Why so soon?"

"I don't know, Bells. God must have had more important plans for him."

"I miss him."

"I know."

"It's not fair!"

"I know."

After a long time of silence, Edward cleared his throat. "I need to talk you about something. Well, a few things actually. I'm glad we're here because I think these are decisions for the whole family to make," he gave a small smile and touched the lamb.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking these past couple of weeks and just last night, Uncle Pete called me. Aunt Liz wants to move to North Carolina. So, they're leaving and selling the house. I...I've been thinking about this a lot and you have to tell me if you think this is a bad idea but I've already mentioned it to Trenton."

"Just say it!" Bella playfully smacked his arm as he sat down cross legged beside her.

"I want to buy the house from them. I want to move to Forks. Bella, I need to get the hell out of this damn city."

Bella stared at him in shock. "Edward..."

"I know the house is cheaper than what we'll be able to sell ours for. You've seen the place, it's huge. It's even safer than what we have now. The yard is huge. The boys will have plenty of room to play. You'll be close to your family..."

"What about yours?" Bella wondered, knowing Esme was going to cry when she found out Edward even considered leaving.

"I've mentioned it to dad. He says they'll come visit regularly and we are more than welcome anytime back at their place. Bella, we don't have to decide today but I just wanted to let you know... I put in my resignation notice with Hale Law."

"What?" Bella gasped, "You love your job! You're just going to walk away?"

"I've been thinking about it for awhile now. I can open a small practice in Forks. We have the more than enough money to get started."

"You'd really move to little, old Forks?"

"Yeah. I think it's in the best interest of you and the kids. We'll just have to visit a lot."

"Edward, I'd love to! I love it there!"

"Alright, then. I don't want to jump into this, though. Let's wait until we hear what the jury has to say and then we can call and talk to Uncle Pete. We can go down there in a few days, check it out, visit with your dad for a little bit."

"Sounds good. We better get going. We're going to be late. Oh, and I notice Natalia wasn't there this morning. It was strange."

"That's another thing we need to talk about but it's kind of a...um...well, you'll find out tonight. Which, just letting you know, we're having dinner tonight at our place with a couple people. I have food ordered so we don't have to cook. Also, before we get to the court house, I just want you to know that no matter what is decided, he will never get anywhere near you again."

Everyone seemed to show up for the conclusion of this whole ordeal. Edward's entire family showed up—minus baby Livy—who was staying with Tyler, who Alice was calling every five minutes. After the judge got everyone to quiet down, he asked the jury to stand and began to ask, "On the count of Assault With a Deadly Weapon, how do you find the defendant?"

"Guilty."

"On the count of Rape in the First Degree, how do you find the defendant?"

"Guilty."

"On the account of Attempted Homicide, how do you find the defendant?"

"Guilty."

"Mr. Newton, you are sentenced..."

Bella was so relieved, she nearly fell over from exhaustion. Edward was practically holding her up. They'd won. After months and months of living in fear, Mike was being put away for a long, long time. Bella about jumped out of her skin when Mike was lead past her and he yelled, "I'm not going to be put away forever! You better watch that rich ass husband of yours!"

Edward pulled her further away from Mike and held her still from behind since the first row of seats was behind her. "It's over, Bella. We freaking won. He's not going to hurt you or anyone else. Not anymore."

The rest of the day was a blur. Everyone, including the judge, congratulated her—even though he ignored her husband completely. To her surprise, Charlie and Billy had even driven up from Forks. They had been sitting in the back, wanting to surprise her...it worked. _This must have been who's coming for dinner. _While she talked to them, Edward mingled with his family and co-workers. Natalia still didn't make an appearance. While her dad asked about the twins, Bella looked around for Edward and found him on his cell phone.

A little bit later he came over and said, "We should be getting home. Charlie, Billy, would you like to join us for dinner? We have a special guest coming." _So these two aren't the mystery guests..._ With a curious look, Bella followed them out of the courthouse, praying she wouldn't have to step foot inside this place for a long, long time.

**The end is near for Waiting for the End. I have a lot of planning and contemplating to do before I write a second part to this story. There is another story that is screaming to be written, also a Twilight fanfic, so I'm going to begin that when this ends. It will give me time to decide how to do part 2 of this one. I'm not sure how long the new story will be but I think you'll like it :) So, with that said, this story probably has about two chapters and an epilogue left. I know, I know, I feel a little teary-eyed myself ;) Until next time, LP xoxoxoxo**


	37. Chapter 37

**Wow does it feel good to be able to update again! I get scared every time I go to the site because I don't want to have the same thing happen again! It was horrible! Thank you to those who stuck with me and reviewed the last chapter! You guys rock! So, here it is, we're going to see how Bella handles Jake's news :)**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :)**

**Previously on Waiting for the End: A little bit later he came over and said, "We should be getting home. Charlie, Billy, would you like to join us for dinner? We have a special guest coming." _So these two aren't the mystery guests..._ With a curious look, Bella followed them out of the courthouse, praying she wouldn't have to step foot inside this place for a long, long time.**

**Chapter 37**

Bella sat at the head of the large dining room table that they rarely ever used. Edward was opposite her while her father and Billy sat in between them on one side. There were two place settings opposite of them. Edward still hadn't told her who would fill those seats. While Charlie and Edward made awkward small talk, Billy told her about the news from Forks.

Just as she was about to ask Edward when they could dig into the food that was sitting in front of them, the doorbell sounded and Edward got up. From where she was sitting, she couldn't see the hallway that led to the dining room. Just the doorway. So, when Billy gasped, Bella stood up to walk over to where her husband had moments ago walked out into. Before she could push her chair back enough to walk away from the table, her childhood best friend rounded the corner.

This was him, not the stranger she'd met during her last trip to Forks. She could see it in his eyes, the way the infectious smile broke out across his face, her friend was back. To her surprise, he was holding Natalia's little boy and Natalia was right behind him. She returned his smile, frozen to the floor and unable to go to him. When Billy finally cleared his voice and said, "Jacob," Bella saw Edward help Natalia to her seat, trying to keep his distance. She knew he was watching his wife become happy to see another man. Her heart went out to him.

"Dad. I've missed you," Jake said, setting Alex down and walking over to bend down and hug his father. Billy patted his son's back and Bella saw he was tearing up. When he came over and hugged her, he whispered, "I'm so sorry, Bells. I never, ever wanted to hurt you."

He pulled away and Bella saw that Billy wasn't the only one with tears. "I know. It wasn't you, Jake. It was someone else." A little more loudly so that everyone could here she asked, "What happened? I mean, not that I'm not happy but why are you here?"

"Why don't we sit down and eat. Jacob and I can explain but I want to make sure you get dinner," Edward said quietly.

Jake sat down beside her and little Alex reached for him from his mother's arms. "Sorry it took us so long to get here. Natalia and I took Alex to the park when we got into the city and we lost track of time."

"So, you and Natalia, huh?" Bella asked with an amused smile.

"Yeah. She was my rehab sponsor. I guess your husband's schedule was a little booked with taking care of your issues," Jake said playfully.

"Wait...Edward...I don't..."

"Bella, do you remember that night when someone came to the door. Right after we decided to move back here permanently? It was Jacob. He was demanding to see you."

"Why didn't you come get me?" Bella asked, slightly annoyed.

"I'm glad he didn't," Jacob said before continuing, "I was a mess. He invited me in, offered me his coat, and gave me some tea. He told me he wouldn't let me see you until I was clean. Bella, Edward saved my life."

"I had no idea..."

"I couldn't afford it. There was no way and I told him that. He offered to pay for everything and if I stuck with it, he promised I could see you when I wanted. Even the babies, as long as he's there, too. If it wasn't for him, this wouldn't have been possible."

"I'm glad he did it, too," Natalia said, smiling and reaching for Jake's arm. "Edward arranged everything but didn't have the chance to drive up for the sponsor meetings. Boss-man here offered to pay me some extra cash if I would do it. So I agreed."

Bella watched Jacob look at the receptionist that had grown on her over the past months in a way that screamed, 'I'm absolutely in love with this woman!'

Looking over to her husband, who was looking right at her, she smiled and began to tear up again. She mouthed a silent 'Thank you' and made a mental note to show him just how much she appreciated what he did for someone she knew he didn't particularly like.

"So, enough about me, tell me about these little ones on the way."

"They're great. Really active to the point that I barely sleep at night but I would rather them be moving around then not moving at all. It's reassuring. They're like their father, though. They never want to sleep. I see Alex has taken to you rather well."

"Yeah, today was actually my first day with him. I was kind of nervous at first but I think we just kind of clicked."

"He's been following Jake around like he had with Edward...only worse. At least he lets Edward put him down. Poor Jake has had him glued to his hip the entire day."

"I don't mind. I was just glad I got out early. They had planned on me being there until the end of the week but the doctor decided it was time. So, any news? Did you have a shower or anything? I bet Alice planned something for you."

"She wanted to but Edward and I don't need anything right now. We did um...kind of decide, maybe decided, something earlier today." Everyone turned to look at her, including Edward with a confused look on his face. "We aren't totally decided yet. Dad, do you remember Liz and Pete Masen? They own the big house right outside town? Well, I guess gloomy Forks finally got to Edward's Aunt Liz and they're moving to North Carolina. Pete called Edward and um...we're considering buying the house."

"You're moving back?" Charlie smiled a thousand-watt smile.

"We're considering it. We still need to work out the details and Edward has a few cases to wrap up. If all goes well and we decide to take the opportunity, we'll be able to move before the twins come."

"Bella, this is awesome!" Billy beamed.

"Wait, wait. Not that I'm not ecstatic that my little girl is coming home but don't you think this is a little too stressful for you right now. Moving is a big deal. Especially moving a few hours away. Everything you need is already here and what about Edward's job?"

"We've already discussed most of this," Edward said before Bella could, "she won't be doing any lifting at all. We'll rent a moving truck and my dad, Emmett, Jasper, Tyler...everyone will help us move. We can do it over one weekend. Bella won't lift a finger. As far as packing, I'm going to let her help with that but that's it. Just help. The second it seems to be too much for her, I'll stop her and finish myself. Charlie, I won't put her or my sons at risk. Ever."

"What about work?" Natalia reminded him of the other concern. She looked like she was a little panicked.

"Well...I was going to tell you about all of this at work but...I put in my resignation notice."

"Edward..."

"Relax. I won't let them put you with some of the idiots we work with. I actually spoke to Trenton himself about moving you up as his own secretary. Agnes is retiring soon and he'll need someone. It will be a pay raise and less hours. Plus, you won't have to deal with my crap. I know putting up with me is probably the most difficult part of your job."

"I love working for you, Edward. Since the beginning, you've always been kind. I never felt like I was below you or just a secretary. What are you going to do now, though?"

"Well, I'm going to enjoy my sons and my wife. When I get the chance, if we decide to move, I've been wanting to open my own firm. I've learned a lot from Trenton and have wanted to do this for awhile now."

"We're taking things slow but who knows," Jake smiled, "maybe someday you'll have the opportunity to work with Edward, again. In Forks."

Natalia smiled back, "Maybe someday."

It was after nine until everyone left and Edward had the place cleaned up. Bella was perched in her window like usual, reading "Water for Elephants", when she saw lights pull into the driveway. Calling out to Edward, he came in a matter of seconds. "What? What's wrong?"

"Calm down. I just wanted to know if you invited anyone over? Anymore surprise guests?" she asked with a smile.

"No. Why?"

"Someone just pulled into the driveway. I thought maybe you knew who it might be," Bella shrugged, getting up and following her husband to the door.

"Bella, go upstairs and wait for me to tell you to come down. Go."

"Edward..."

"Just do it!" Edward couldn't believe who he saw getting out of the strange car. After making sure Bella made it upstairs okay, he threw the door open and came face to face with a girl who weighed about a third of what he did and was shorter than his wife. He long, black hair was pulled into a messy bun and tears were running down her face. He was just about to demand what the hell she was doing there when he really saw her. "Angela...what are you doing here?"

"I...Ben...he..."

"Did he hurt you?" Edward asked, hating the idea that any man would lay a hand on someone in a hurtful way—unless it was consensual...

"No, he tried, but I ran."

Bella had to be his first priority. "Did he follow you here?"

"No."

"Why are you here, Angela? Why not just call the police?"

"I wanted to apologize to Bella. I didn't know what happened...I mean, I knew about Mike but not about...what he did. What _Ben_ did. I didn't know until a couple hours ago. Ben came home from the courthouse, changed, and took off again. I was worried about him so I started calling around. Eventually I called Tyler Crowley and he said to maybe try Emmett. So I called and Rosalie answered and she told me...she told me everything. Oh, God...I'm so sorry. If I'd known he'd even consider hurting Bella I would have left him a long time ago. I can't believe I didn't see it..."

"Angela, come in. It's chilly out and you need to calm down before you drive anywhere else." He motioned for her to come in and yelled up to Bella, who peeked over the railing at them. As soon as she saw Angela, Bella waddled down the stairs as quickly as she could and walked right over to her friend, giving her a hug.

"Ang! What happened? Are you alright?"

"I...no. I'm not," Angela answered honestly. "Bella, I'm sorry. Rose just told me what happened with Ben. He was sleeping with her just to save Mike's stupid fucking ass! I can't believe he'd want to help Mike. I honestly don't think they planned for what happened. I really think Ben just wanted to keep Mike out of jail...which is absolutely no excuse...I'm just sorry."

"Oh, sweetie, this isn't your fault. Did he hurt you? Do you need..."

"He got really angry when I confronted him about it but he didn't hurt me physically. I ran. I don't have anything except what I'm wearing and my car, though. I'm afraid to go home. I just wanted to stop here and say that I was sorry."

"Where are you going to go?"

"I was going to go to my mom's but I don't want her to know..."

"Why don't you stay here tonight? We can make up one of the guest rooms for you and tomorrow I'll take you over to your house myself to get your things. I won't let him hurt you," Edward said kindly.

"That would be great. I mean...he probably won't be there anyway but I'm still scared."

Bella gave her another hug, "Come on. We can call the cops and we have tons of left overs from dinner if you're hungry..." Bella and Angela stayed up most of the night. Edward let them have their space and in the end, he wound up in the guest room while his wife and her friend fell asleep in his bed while watching some late night talk show. Throughout the night, he must have checked four hundred times that every door in the house was locked and that the girls were sleeping safely.

The next morning, he made the girls pancakes as they sat at the kitchen table and watched the news. "The case of the wife of a local millionaire came to a close yesterday as Micheal Thomas Newton was sentenced to forty years behind bars for the sexual and physical assault of Isabella Cullen. In related news, this case may not quite be over. Benjamin Bryant, friend of Mr. Netwon, was arrested last night when he wrecked his vehicle into a nearby ravine. Under the influence of alcohol and a mix of narcotics, Benjamin admitted to helping Newton clear his name by trying to get answers from people close to the case. He is in jail this morning and will remain there until someone has the ability to put up his bail."

"Oh, my God! I can't believe this! I never would have thought Ben could be involved with drugs!"

"People do a lot of strange things, Angela. Do you want to head back home this morning?"

"Yeah, I guess so. My name is on the lease, I'm going to have the locks changed."

"Alright, finish eating and I'll drive you over there before work. Bella, do you need anything while I'm out today?"

"No. I'm going to spend the day doing absolutely nothing."

Over the rest of the week, Edward and Bella spoke with his aunt and uncle, Trenton, a real estate agent, and the bank. Now, it was Saturday afternoon and they were standing in the home that would soon be theirs. His aunt and uncle had flown to North Carolina to go in search of houses, so they had this one to themselves.

The stone house had three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, a large kitchen, a dining room, a common living room area, an office, and another living room area tucked away towards the back. It was the perfect place for Edward's grandfather's piano. It was still a chilly, spring day but they headed outside. The yard was huge with a big picnic table and a wooden swing. It would be the perfect place for the boys to play and was nowhere near a main road that actually had a lot of speeders.

"So, what do you think?"

"I love it."

"But?"

"I'm just worried about you. Are you going to be able to leave your family like this?"

"_You_ are my family. You and the boys."

"You know what I mean. You're not going to be able to get upset and take off to your mom and dad's to calm down. You aren't going to be able to call your mom when we need help with the twins. You won't be able to drop everything and go out with Emmett when he calls and needs a drinking buddy. This is just going to be you and me. Raising two babies. On our own."

"I want this, Bella. We're not going to be on our own. We have your dad, Billy, Sue, and everyone else down at La Push. You know my family will be visiting pretty often. We'll have plenty of help. I really think this will be good for us. I want to get away from Seattle, Bella."

"I love it here. This is my home but I can't let you give up the life you knew for this one. Edward, why are you wanting to leave so badly? Why do you want to come here? If it's not a good reason, I'm not going to agree to it. I'm telling you that right now. Why?"

"Do you really want me to be honest with you?"

"Yes!"

"You aren't happy in Seattle. It's not home to you. Bella, I never should have taken you away from everyone like I did. I see now why your dad was so unhappy about you moving up there with me. I was so caught up in my career that I didn't stop to think about what would be best for you and that wasn't right of me. I knew you had your own hopes and dreams and I feel like I never gave you the opportunity to achieve them. You were so, so happy here. You loved teaching at the reservation. Who the hell was I to pull you away from that?"

"Edward, we can't do this just because of me. I have a soft spot for Seattle, too. Not as much as I love it here but I'm still happy."

"It's me too, Bells. I'm not the person that I want to be. This cold-hearted big shot lawyer aura isn't me and I don't ever want it to be. I got into this because I wanted to help people. Now look at me. I'm a divorce lawyer, coaching people on how to rob each other blind legally. I dove completely into my job when I should have been home with you getting ready for my sons to arrive. I've said things to people who I care about that I should never have said..."

"Like when?"

"I...I said something to Tanya that I'm still not totally believing that I did..."

"Tanya?"

"Yeah. I kind of told her that she never meant anything to me. That it was just me having fun."

"I don't even like Tanya and I don't think it was right of you to say that."

"Do you see what I mean? I just want to get away from the city. Settle in somewhere a little calmer. Of course I'll miss my family once in awhile but it's not like you haven't been able to manage. The drunken nights with Emmett will still happen-just a lot less frequently. Which makes sense being that we're going to have not one but two newborns on our hands."

Bella stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him right on the lips. "I love you, Edward Cullen. We're going to be okay. On our own. Here in Forks."

A smile broke out across his lips as he pulled out his cell phone. "Hey, Uncle Pete. Yeah, we're going to do it. We're buying the house."

Over the next couple of months, they managed to sell their current home, move everything to their new home, and were finally getting settled in. To Bella's surprise, Jake had stopped by the day before and told her he was going to ask Natalia to move down to Forks with him. While Natalia would no longer have a job, Edward had found a small office building not too far from the new house and offered to have Natalia help him organize and get everything ready for when he decided to start working again. Bella knew that between the promise of a job and the chance to see Jake more, Natalia would almost definitely agree to it. If not for herself, then for Alex, who absolutely adored his new father figure.

Rosalie and Emmett weren't quite living together yet but they still had a little one of their own on the way. Emmett would visit a lot and Rosalie would sometimes join him but she was pretty caught up in trying to wrap things up at work before she took her maternity leave. The most important thing was Emmett's happiness and Bella knew he was finally getting away from that dark hole he'd fallen into when he'd found out about his wife and Ben. Angela and Ben were over, Ben never did get out of jail.

Away from the hustle and bustle of Seattle, Bella finally began to feel like she'd gotten her Edward back. The same one who she fell in love with years ago at this same place. Not having to go into work freed him up to get ready for the twin's arrival. He had packed and unpacked them pretty much by himself during the move, set up and painted the new nursery, and even started seeing Kathy again—who he and Bella decided they would drive up once every two weeks to see.

Sitting outside on the wooden swing, Bella closed her eyes and thought about how happy she felt. It was true, Seattle wasn't home. This was home. The dinners with Charlie, visiting friends on the reservation—even Edward was becoming really good friends with Sam, and she was even thinking about going back to teach at the school when the boys were a little older, made her feel like her life was finally in order.

She was just about to doze into sleep when she felt a pain shoot through her abdomen and suddenly there was wetness on the swing underneath her. Edward was down at the new office, showing Jacob around. Waddling back into the house, she groaned as another pain hit her and called her husband. "I think it's time. I need you."

In less than ten minutes, Edward came flying up the driveway. "Bella! Bella!"

"I'm fine," she said coming out of the house, rolling her overnight bag behind her.

"Let me get that!" Bella bit back laughter when she saw how flustered he was.

"Edward, breathe."

"Eight months...you're only eight months..."

Bella walked over as calmly as she could and grabbed his shoulder. "Edward, this is something we've talked about. People rarely carry twins to the full nine months. I need you to calm down and support me, alright? You go grab the diaper bag and your overnight bag. I'm going to call people and tell them. They aren't going to just fall out. We have time. Now, go get the car loaded."

While Edward drove, like a total madman, Bella finished calling their families. Her mom and Phil were catching the next plane they could and Edward's family was on their way. They'd made it clear to everyone that it was going to be emotional for them and even after the labor, they would really appreciate some privacy. Of course, that didn't stop anyone from wanting to come.

Upon their arrival, Charlie was already staking claim to the television in the waiting room. "Bells! I'll be right in here if you need me!"

She had to laugh at that one, he wanted nothing to do with the idea of his daughter giving birth anymore than his daughter wanted him to. A nurse came in, taking vitals and Edward helped her change into a flimsy hospital robe. The doctor came in shortly after, just as Bella's stomach was beginning to tighten to the point where she was about to break her husbands hand from taking the pain out on it.

"Baby A is coming fast. Bella, I need you to push down as hard as you can on the count of three. Ready? 1-2-3-push!"

This continued for almost forty five more minutes before she finally delivered the first baby. He was only four and a half pounds and he was beautiful. They let Bella see and hold him while Edward cut the cord. As soon as it was done, they took him away, which Bella was in no way happy about but knew she had to get ready for the second baby to come.

"Edward, I'm so tired..."

"I know, baby. Just a little longer and you can rest. Did you see him, Bells? He's amazing!"

"I did," Bella said, tearing up.

"Alright, Bella, we need to talk about something important. Please don't panic. Everything is going to be fine with Baby B but I need you to listen carefully. He's coming through breech and I'm afraid we aren't going to be able to turn him. We could try to keep this up and have the possibility of not being able to deliver him naturally, anyway. What I highly recommend is a c-section."

Immediately, Bella began to cry. The thought of being awake to hear them cutting into her was enough to make her vomit. She felt Edward stroke her hair and kiss her forehead as he and the doctor both talked back and forth about what to do. After giving birth to one baby already, Bella was completely and totally exhausted. Add that to a case of serious hospital phobia and she was going from cranky pregnant woman to nutcase in a matter of seconds.

"Can I talk to her alone?" she heard Edward ask.

"Yes but we need to decide soon," the doctor said before leaving.

"Bella, you just told me how tired you are. If you let them do this, you can just try to relax and just let them do the work. I'll be right beside you. You can't even see what they're doing. Think about what could happen to him if the natural delivery doesn't work."

"I'm scared!"

"I know but think about him. Think about your son. Think about our son. I bet he's scared. His brother is no longer in there with him and he can't get out. I bet he's freaking out a little more than you are," Edward attempted to make a joke.

Bella laughed in spite of the situation and took a deep breath. "Alright. Let's do this."

**Things are coming to an end very, very soon and I'm definitely feeling a little sad :( No worries, though, I have five chapters of a new story written and ready to go! The next, and possibly last, chapter will be up soon! Until then, LP. **


	38. Chapter 38

**The end has come for Waiting for the End, at least part one of it has. So, I hope you read and enjoy and as a parting gift will review to let me know what you thought of this whole story. A new story is on its way so keep an eye out for me :)**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns these characters and the awesomeness that is Twilight! I'm just subjecting them to my fun little schemes. I do own Jasper Cat. Literally. I have a 17 lb tabby named Jasper Cat. :) *I also don't own the lyrics at the bottom...those definitely do not belong to me...**

**Previously on Waiting for the End:"I know but think about him. Think about your son. Think about our son. I bet he's scared. His brother is no longer in there with him and he can't get out. I bet he's freaking out a little more than you are," Edward attempted to make a joke.**

**Chapter 38**

Edward sat in the sterile, vinyl chair beside his wife's hospital bed thinking back over the last few hours. When he'd left to show Jacob and Sam the knew building, he'd never expected the call from Bella that it was time. In fact, he had been leaving to go pick up dinner for them, expecting a normal night. Jacob had gone home to pick up Billy and call Charlie, while Sam went to round everyone up at La Push.

To his surprise, his parents made it there right after the second baby was born and Emmett, Rose, Alice, Jasper, and Olivia all made it soon after. They had visited with Bella and the new babies for about a half hour before he got that look from Bella that told him to get everyone out so she could sleep. They'd all gone into town to grab a late dinner and then were going to go over to him and Bella's for the night to get some rest.

Now, Edward sat with swollen eyes and a lump in his throat looking down at his two little sons. William Anthony Cullen was older than his brother by forty-seven minutes. Trevor Anthony Cullen was a lot smaller but just as healthy. Besides the delivery itself, there were no big complications and Edward couldn't believe how relieved he felt. His mom showed him how to swaddle them and a few tricks to calm them down but when she left, the boys had both begun to cry...really, really loudly. He had panicked, not knowing what to do, and his exhausted wife somehow slept through it.

Eventually, he got them to calm down by just talking soothingly to them and that's when it started. For the first time in he couldn't remember how long, he actually began to sob. He cried out of happiness for his little boys, he cried out of happiness for his wife's safe delivery, and he cried for the baby he never had the chance to hear cry. He could remember sitting in the hospital back home holding his lifeless child, wishing to God—or anyone at all that might be up there, to just give him the chance to get to know his child. Today, he was given the gift of two.

With one brother in each arm, he smiled down at them and couldn't believe this was really happening. After everything he and Bella had been through, from the day he'd saved Bella from drowning, to dealing with them being away from each other in college, to their crazy marriage, to the death of their child, to an almost eminent divorce, and even Bella's rape, Edward was finally getting the one thing he wanted more than anything—a family of his own.

"Edward," Bella whispered, trying to get his attention without waking the sleeping babies he was holding.

"Hey, angel. How are you feeling?"

"Really, really sore."

"I'm sorry," he said with a smile.

"No you're not," Bella said, trying to hide a smile and act like she was upset with him.

"I am. I'm happy that I have my boys but I never want to see you hurt. Do you need me to get you anything?"

"Yes. I would like one of my kids."

Edward handed William to her and sat back with Trevor. Both babies stirred but eventually settled down again. "The nurse told me they screamed when they were separated in the nursery."

"I have a feeling separation is going to be a big issue for them. We need to work on that now that they're little."

"There's so much about twins that I know nothing about. It's overwhelming."

"Well, we'll figure it out..." that's when Bella got a good look at her husband's blotchy face. "Honey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You've been crying," Bella said with certainty.

"I'm just having trouble getting the image of Edward Jr. out of my head still. It's nothing to worry about. How about I run down and get us something to eat. I haven't eaten since breakfast and it's night time," he said, walking Trevor over to the little bed on wheels. The second he set the little guy down, Trevor began to cry. Soon, his brother joined him.

"Here, put William in with him," Bella took command and motioned for him to take his other son. As soon as he set the two beside each other, they stopped crying and began cooing.

"Yeah, we're um...definitely going to have to work on that. It's going to be tough."

"Baby, I don't know if you've realized this yet or not but we own dealing with tough situations. If we managed everything else, raising these two is going to be a piece of cake."

**Two months later**

"Edward, we have to leave! Like now!"

"I can't find Liam's pacifier!"

"Did you check the crib?" Bella asked, shifting the two month old Trevor to her other arm.

Edward shook his head and went back upstairs. "Well, little one, we are going to be late for Auntie Rose and Uncle Emmett's shotgun wedding."

"Who the hell has a shotgun anyway after they're already married?" Edward asked, coming back downstairs with a baby on one arm and a diaper bag hanging from the other.

"Emmett. Enough said. I really think he just wants to have a big party. By the way, when the boys' first word is a swear word, I'm telling everyone it's your fault."

"Haha. You're hilarious. Isn't mommy hilarious, Trev?"

Bella shot him a look and opened the door. After all of the craziness with Emmett and Rosalie, the two had finally agreed to remarry. They wanted to do it before the baby came and they didn't want anything big or fancy. It had been decided that they would redo their vows with a handful of people there and then have a big barbecue at Esme and Carlisle's.

It was a Friday afternoon and traffic wasn't too bad. The whole ride, Bella kept laughing as the boys cooed back and forth at each other. When they were entering Seattle, Bella studied her husband's face. He seemed tense, though he tried not to show it, and she knew why. Whether it happened tonight at the rehearsal dinner, or tomorrow at the wedding, he was eminently going to have to deal with a demon from his past. Bella tried to stop herself from smiling when she realized how much of a demon the person in question truly was but she was unsuccessful.

It had been four months since they'd made the big move and Edward seemed happy enough but she knew him. Being Edward, he always tried to do what would make others happy. Even if he just said something awkwardly and he thought it might have offended someone, he held onto that feeling until he could apologize. He was truly haunted by what he'd said to Tanya that day at the court house. Bella knew he wanted to make things right, or at least apologize. She also knew he wasn't doing so out of respect for herself—and this didn't sit right with her.

Pulling into the familiar driveway of her husband's family's home, she watched Emmett come barreling down the stairs and wrap his brother in a tight hug. As quick as he'd hugged him, he let go and came around to grab Bella. She laughed and said hello while he backed away and pulled the back door open. "My favorite boys!" She heard William begin to babble and Trevor squeal in delight.

While Emmett and Edward got the boys out, Bella went in search of Rosalie and Alice, finding them in Emmett's childhood bedroom, putting the finishing touches on the guys' boutonnieres for the next day. "Bella!" Alice exclaimed as Rosalie waved with a warm smile, her belly stuck out more than when Bella had seen her two weeks ago.

"How are you guys? I'm sorry I couldn't do much to help with everything...the favors are done for tomorrow, they're in the back of our car."

"Don't worry about it, Bells, you and Edward here with the boys is enough to make me happy. Emmett couldn't live without his little brother. You should see how mopey he gets when you two leave to go home."

"Edward's the same way. You'd think they were twins for as much as they hate to be separated."

"How's that going?" Alice asked with a cringe.

"It's alright, I guess. They just still absolutely hate being away from each other. We got them to the point where they are sleeping in different cribs but if they can't hear each other they like panic and cry. It's horrible. If they are with one of us, and the other is with someone too, they're okay. It's just when no one's holding them and they are apart that I think they get scared. William is a little more independent than Trevor though. Trevor's definitely a mommy's boy and Liam won't let daddy go too far."

"You guys are so cute!" Alice cried.

"Yeah, when it comes to twins, better you than me, though," Rose laughed, rubbing her belly.

"Alice, where's Livy?"

"With mom. They're in the backyard setting up tables and she offered to take her so I could help Rose with these. It's hard to hold a toddler and tie bows at the same time. It's hard to hold a toddler and do anything at the same time..."Alice corrected herself.

Rose laughed and asked, "So, is Jake coming in tonight?"

"He said yesterday that he was. Alex is excited about it so I can't see him not showing up. Plus, he already talked to Edward about me and him taking the boys to the park this evening so Edward could help set things up without too much interruption."

"And my brother agreed to this?" Alice asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I honestly didn't expect him to. I mean, he's been great about letting Jake and I out of his sight to go to the mall or go grab lunch once in awhile but he's never been around the boys without Edward there. I think he hesitated a lot but eventually agreed. I mean, Jake has really turned things around and thankfully, we're back to Edward's jealousy issues instead of it being that he's worried Jake will hurt me or the boys. He knows Jake is infatuated with Nat and Alex, so he's getting better with it. Um, Rose, is Tanya going to be here tonight?"

"Yes," Rose sighed, "Bells, I'm sorry but Carmen's in the wedding and I..."

"You don't have to explain. Really. I actually wanted to talk to her..."

"Bella, please don't cause a scene. I know she's a scheming bitch but..."

"No, it's nothing like that. I just need to talk to her for a minute."

"Good luck with that. If you want to talk to her she's probably here now. Maybe you could do it tonight, before the wedding?" Rose asked, hinting that she'd prefer it that way.

"Bella, hey, I can't get Liam to stop crying. I've tried everything, a diaper change and I even gave him a bottle—I hope you don't mind..."

"Not at all," Bella said, putting down the satin ribbon she was working on and taking her son from her mother in law. "They're probably both hungry. I fed them before we left but it's been awhile." Her original intentions had been to breastfeed but soon after trying, she found that the boys were just crying nonstop, obviously hungry even after they would suckle for what seemed like hours. A trip to the doctors confirmed her worries, they were losing weight—she just wasn't able to produce enough for both of them.

"Well, I'm not sure who Trevor ended up with. Carlisle had him the last I saw."

"Yeah, I think this little guy wants his brother," she kissed her sons forehead and stood up, "don't you, Liam? You just want your little brother."

Bella found Trevor out back with Carlisle, who was sitting in the grass, feeding him a bottle. "Hey, Edward got him ready for me."

"That's fine. Esme just fed Liam," Bella smiled, sitting down beside them. Liam was still crying and Bella rolled her eyes. "Can you take the bottle away from him?"

"Huh? He's going to..." Carlisle began pulling the bottle away and sure enough he started to cry. Liam quit crying and Bella gave Carlisle the okay to keep feeding her son. "Wow."

"Yeah. They just want to know that the other is close by."

Edward came up to them and crouched down behind her, kissing her on the top of her head. "Hello, Mrs. Cullen. Do you mind if I got with Em to pick up the kegs for tomorrow?"

"No but can you just hold him for a couple of minutes. I think he wants you, at first I thought it was that he wanted Trev but he's been fussy."

Edward took him and stood up. Liam immediately smiled and snuggled into him. "Why don't I just take him? Trev's about to fall asleep and we won't be long. Besides, you and Jake are taking them to the park soon and I won't see them for most of the evening."

"I don't know..."

"Bella. I can handle my own son. I know you haven't left them yet but we'll be gone twenty minutes at the most."

"I guess it's alright. Just get back before Trevor wakes up."

While he was gone, Carmen and Tanya showed up. At the time, Bella was settling Trevor into the bassinet Esme kept up for them in Edward's room. Once she had the monitor in hand, she headed down to see if anyone needed any help. Walking into the kitchen, she saw Tanya through the window. It was now or never. Gaining courage, she walked outside and headed towards her. "Hey, can we talk for a minute?"

Tanya looked at her in shock. "Me?"

"Yeah. It's kind of important."

"What is it?" Tanya asked, glancing around nervously.

"He didn't mean what he said. You know what I'm talking about and you know he didn't mean it."

"He was pretty convincing, Bella," Tanya said, crossing her arms.

"He's a lawyer. Trust me, he never meant what he said to you. Had he meant it, you wouldn't have almost ruined our marriage. You know him- a hell of a lot more than I'd like-but you know him. He's still upset about what he said. If he wasn't do you really think for ten seconds that I'd be even talking to you about this?"

Tanya sighed, "I get it. Alright? What do you want me to say? It's done and over. You have your perfect husband and your perfect sons and your perfect family and your perfect friends. You know, I'm not proud of what I did to you or to him but I'd do it again in a heartbeat. You can say what you want about me just wanting his money but you don't know me. At all. You know him as well. You know he wouldn't surround himself with someone who would hurt him like that. I love him. I always will. So, for the love of God, could you try not to rub this in my face every damn chance you get?"

Bella was surprised. Not only had Tanya come across as being human, she thought Bella was the one trying to be a bitch. "Tanya, that's not why I'm talking to you about it. I want you to talk to him..."

"Wait. Hold on. You want me to talk to him? Your husband? The same husband you won't even let give me a ride home?"

"Yes. That husband. I'm tired of him being upset about what he said. I'm not giving you the green light to try to get him into bed. I just can't see him upset like this anymore. Please, just talk to him."

"When?"

"When he gets back with Emmett. I'll be taking the boys to the park for a little bit. Meet me in the living room in fifteen minutes. He won't talk to you if he thinks I don't know about it."

Bella was strapping Trevor into the stroller when Tanya walked in and sat down on the couch. "He's adorable."

"Thank you."

"Bella, hey, Liam survived the whole trip with me and nothing bad happened!" Edward came in, announcing it to her grandly like it was the biggest accomplishment in the world, sarcasm filled the comment. When he turned to put his other son into the stroller as well, he stopped, his jaw almost dropped when he saw Tanya. "What..."

Bella shoved the diaper bag into the bottom and pushed them towards the door. "Make your amends, Edward. It's okay."

Edward watched his wife leave with his sons, leaving him on his own to deal with Tanya. "I...I don't...Bella...left."

"Breathe. I'm not going to try to jump you in your parents living room. I'm not that pathetic."

"Tanya..."

"Look, your wife assured me that you are upset about what you said. It's done and over and what was said was said. I love you. You don't love me. I completely get it and quite honestly am tired of hearing it. So, if it'll help you sleep at night...I forgive you," she said, after standing up and starting to walk out the door.

Not knowing what else to do, Edward reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "No. That's not good enough. I owe you...a big fucking apology. You have to know I didn't mean what I said!"

"I do, really. I do, Edward."

"I love her," Edward said with tears in his eyes and letting go of her shoulder. "You just wouldn't back down and I couldn't get you to understand that it was really and truly over. I was scared that Mike was going to walk and I was worried about Bella and I didn't know what else to do to make you want to not talk to me anymore..."

"Well, you figured it out. Believe me, it was rather successful. Edward, look at you. You're crying over her. I know I'm going to hate myself for saying this...but I'm happy for you. If you're happy, I'll deal."

"Someday you'll find your guy, Tanya."

"Yeah, how are you so damn sure?"

"You, my dear, are nothing short of determined. You don't give up."

She smiled back at him. "Thanks. Edward, I was going to tell Carlisle to tell you, I thought you should know that...I'm leaving Seattle and heading for New York. I met a girl who works at a photography studio there and she's going to try to get me in. If not, I don't know, maybe I'll enroll at NYU or...I don't know. There's nothing here for me. I only stuck around this long because of you. I'm moving on, Edward."

"Good luck, Tanya. I really mean that. I never wanted to hurt you like I did. If I didn't have feelings for you, what happened between us wouldn't have happened. I love her too fucking much. I won't hurt her again. I can't but I do want you to know that there are feelings and there always will be. She loves Jake and I know that but I also know she loves me more. I think she knows in some way, I love you, too."

He saw her face light up for the first time in ages and a small part of his heart melted. She had been his first love and he'd never truly get over that. He didn't need to though. He had Bella and knew that he would never be happy with anyone else the way he was truly happy with his wife. It was his fault the two girls hated each other so much. He should have set boundaries with Tanya without hurting her, he should have made sure Bella understood and trusted him with his ex. Things would have been so, so different had he just encouraged their friendship instead of feeling the need to hide them from each other.

"I'm really glad we had this talk. Tell Bella I said thank you. Good luck with things, yourself. Oh, and your boys are beautiful."

"Thanks, Tan. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call," he said, giving her a hug.

"I won't call. Not anymore. This is it, Edward. I'm really letting you go. I'm finally going to do this."

"Goodbye, Tanya," Edward said, releasing her and watched her walk away.

Bella and Jake were pushing the boys on the baby swings, side by side and talking about how crazy their lives had turned in such a short amount of time. "I'm really glad you found Natalia, Jake. She's great and Alex loves you."

"I'm really glad you have Edward. He's not what I thought he was. I truly wanted to look out for you more than get in your pants. You mean a lot to me. I didn't realize until a few months ago how much of a heart he actually had."

"He's amazing, Jake, and I've seen very few men who were born to be fathers but Edward is one of them. I'm so, so happy."

"We should head back. He's probably starting to worry."

Fifteen minutes later, they were approaching the large canopy covering friends and family. She looked around for Edward and didn't see him. "Where's he at, Em?"

"Edward? Haven't seen him since we got back from the beer distributor..."

Bella began to worry. There weren't that many people there and it was becoming dark. It didn't make sense that Emmett hadn't seen him in an hour and a half. Jake, can you get Trevor? I need to find Edward but really can't carry them both."

With Jake following her, she walked as fast as she could, toting a baby who was half asleep. When he wasn't in the kitchen, she tried the living room, and then headed upstairs. His bedroom door was shut and her stomach lurched. _He wouldn't cheat on me. Not now. Not with the boys._ Bella took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Her husband was sprawled on his back, by himself, on his bed. She hated herself for assuming what she did. Quietly, she walked in but he heard her and looked up.

Jake helped her put both boys in the bassinet and told them he'd see them in the morning at the wedding, that he was heading off to Natalia's. When the door was closed, Bella walked over and laid down beside him. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Just tired. How are the boys? Did everything go okay?"

"Yeah. It was great. How did things go here?"

"Good. She's um...leaving. For good. To New York."

Bella was trying to read him but couldn't quite seem to. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. I mean, this is what I've been waiting for I think. Bella, I've always known without a doubt that I was supposed to be with you for the rest of my life. I don't know why I held on to her like I did. All I did was hurt both of you. I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry." He said with tears in his eyes.

"I love you. You have nothing to be sorry for..." A buzzing in her pocket interrupted her line of thought and she pulled out her phone. It was a text from Jasper. 'Hey, look outside.' She read it to Edward and they sat up, sliding the door open and stepping onto the balcony that overlooked the festivities. In less than thirty seconds, they realized what Jasper was talking about. A loud boom sounded and the sky lit up in white and purple.

Both nervous parents immediately looked back at their twin boys who had their little fists clasped but were somehow sleeping soundly. When that didn't change after the second loud one, Bella and Edward turned back towards the fireworks. While Bella leaned against the railing, Edward took her hair and tucked it behind her ear just before he kissed up and down her neck. "I love you, Bella. We may be in way over our heads but I love you. That's all I know and all that matters. The rest is just...life. Life happens but I'm one step ahead of the game. I know what will get me through it."

"What's that?" Bella asked, sighing and feeling just as content as her two little boys.

"You," Edward whispered, "Like they always say, the hardest part of ending is starting again. This is a new start for us, Bells. It's you. It's always been you."

Bella smiled brightly as her face was lit up by the display in the sky. He was right. Over the past two years, they'd gotten two beautiful children—and in her opinion—a second chance after the loss of their first baby, her best friend, her amazing family, but most important...she'd gotten her husband back. If these new beginnings were the hardest part, and she didn't doubt that for ten seconds, she was content to feel this way for the rest of their lives. No matter what life threw at them.

**Waiting for the End**

This is not the end  
This is not the beginning,  
Just a voice like a riot  
Rocking every revision  
But you listen to the tone  
And the violent rhythm  
Though the words sound steady  
Something empty's within 'em

We say Yeah!  
With fists flying up in the air  
Like we're holding onto something  
That's invisible there,  
'Cause we're living at the mercy of  
The pain and the fear  
Until we dead it, Forget it,  
Let it all disappear.

Waiting for the end to come  
Wishing I had strength to stand  
This is not what I had planned  
It's out of my control...

Flying at the speed of light  
Thoughts were spinning in my head  
So many things were left unsaid  
It's hard to let you go...

(Oh!) I know what it takes to move on,  
I know how it feels to lie,  
All I wanna do  
Is trade this life for something new  
Holding on to what I haven't got

Sitting in an empty room  
Trying to forget the past  
This was never meant to last,  
I wish it wasn't so...

(Oh!) I know what it takes to move on,  
I know how it feels to lie,  
All I wanna do  
Is trade this life for something new  
Holding on to what I haven't got

What was left when that fire was gone?  
I thought it felt right but that right was wrong  
All caught up in the eye of the storm  
And trying to figure out what it's like moving on  
And i don't even know what kind of things I've said  
My mouth kept moving and my mind went dead  
So, picking up the pieces, now where to begin?  
The hardest part of ending Is starting again!

All I wanna do  
Is trade this life for something new  
Holding on to what i haven't got...

This is not the end  
This is not the beginning,  
Just a voice like a riot  
Rocking every revision  
But you listen to the tone  
And the violet rhythm  
Though the words sound steady  
Something empty's within 'em  
(Holding on to what i haven't got)

We say Yeah!  
With fists flying up in the air  
Like we're holding onto something  
That's invisible there,  
'Cause we're living at the mercy of  
The pain and the fear  
Until we dead it, Forget it,  
Let it all disappear  
(Holding on to what i haven't got!) 

Linkin Park

**So this is it. The end. I didn't realize how hard it would be for me to say that. I hope you all enjoyed this crazy ride I've led you down. Hopefully you will check out my new story which I promise you will contain just as much (if not more) drama. Until then, my dearest readers, lots of love. Yours truly, the Letzig Princess.**


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